Archive for the 'Commercial property' Category
Tuesday, April 17th, 2007
Varna’s first shopping mall to open in June
The first of four retail and entertainment centers currently under construction in Bulgarian coastal city Varna will open for business in June, said Dorelov, the local company developing the property.
The 9 mln euro , located near Varna’s landmark Culture and Sports Palace, will feature 50 shops, 15 office units and 135 indoor and outdoor parking spaces.
Central Plaza, with a built-up area of 11,200 sq m, will have its own monthly advertising publication and will be managed by a specially incorporated company.
Liber Property Solutions has the exclusive agency rights for the mall inventory which will rent in the 20-70 euro/sq m range. Another 2 retail and entertainment centers in Varna should welcome their first customers by the end of 2007.
Interservice Uzunovi, the Bulgarian home appliance and consumer electronics retailer, is investing 35 mln euro in the Mall Varna development. The 50,000 sq m mall will occupy a 16,500 sq m site near the future outlet of German food retailer Kaufland.
Luke, the real estate investment trust incorporated by Carl-Heinz Pfohe, the German owner of Bulgarian Ford dealer Moto Pfohe, is building Pfohe Mall in Varna. The 26,000 sq m Pfohe Mall will have 17,500 sq m of retail floor area and 6,500 sq m of raking space and should open by the end of 2007.
Orchid Mall Varna, a project of property developer Orchid Developments, is due to launch by September 2009
Wednesday, April 11th, 2007
Industrial property demand and supply grow in Bulgaria
The supply of contemporary industrial facilities continues to increase steadily, Colliers International reports. Demand, too, continues to grow driven by increased quality requirements by both local and international companies. Owner occupied and build-to-suit developments continue to form almost the entire inventory of modern industrial space.
Land prices of industrial zoned land in some locations increased to unrealistically high levels, while rents for prime industrial space remained stable. The development of the first logistics park was initiated in Varna.
Local and regional infrastructure continues to improve as EUR 731.5 million in Bulgaria and EUR 2,761.25 million in Southeast Europe are being invested in transport infrastructure projects alone. Owner occupied and build-to-suit developments continue to form almost the entire inventory of modern industrial space.
Thursday, April 5th, 2007
Demand for logistics and warehouse property in Bulgaria exeeds supply with 60%
High quality warehouse areas offered on the Bulgarian market occupy 700 000 sq m. This is 60 per cent less than the actual demand. Several major problems affect the sector. Among these are high prices of plots appropriate for the construction of industrial properties and the bad infrastructure.
Prices of appropriate for the purpose plots exceed 35 euro per sq. This is the average sale price in Central Europe. Sale prices of industrial properties are similar all around Central Europe and are comparable to those in Bulgaria. Rental price higher that five euro per sq m is considered higher than average levels in Central and Eastern Europe.
Improving the infrastructure in Bulgaria’s industrial areas will stimulate the market. Industrial property market would become more attractive both for private warehouse owners and for large-scale European players.
In 2006 investors were only talking about big projects in the industrial property sector. In 2007 some of them will be carried out. Analysts expect that the first major projects will appear in 2008. This is a logical result after foreign developers and investment funds stated their intentions to enter the Bulgarian market.
At the moment rental prices of industrial properties vary from three to 5.5 euro per sq m. Vacant space is a rare. Warehouses of poor quality could be rented for one to two euro per sq m. Vacancy rate for this class of properties is 40-50 per cent. Expert do not expect changes in these figures until the first quality logistics centres appear on the market.
Dnevnik Daily
Thursday, April 5th, 2007
Black Sea Property Fund to build residential complex in Malinova Dolina district of the capital Sofia
The Black Sea Property Fund, which invests in the development of housing and holiday homes in Bulgaria, has acquired development land in the Malinova Dolina district of the capital Sofia for 4 mln euro, Regulatory News Service, the news outlet of the London Stock Exchange, reported on Wednesday.
The development cost for the 24,599 sq m site is expected to be between 7 and 8 mln euro. Current ‘as-built’ sale prices, based on comparable properties selling in the region, are estimated at 1,150 euro/sq m including VAT, giving a gross development value of 20 mln euro, Black Sea Property Fund said in a press release.
The AIM-listed fund will develop the land into a residential complex. Construction will be financed primarily through a debt finance facility with a local bank, together with deposits from off-plan sales.
Planning permission is already in place and construction is expected to commence towards the end of 2007 with completion anticipated to occur in spring 2009. Sales are expected to commence during the second half of 2007.
The site is 15 minutes drive from the city centre and its neighbours include the Business Park Sofia, as well as the Residential Park Sofia.
Properties in this area appeal to the wealthier residents of Sofia and there has been an increase in the number of gated residential complexes to cater for this market. The site is located close to one of the stations for the proposed Sofia subway.
Monday, April 2nd, 2007
A foreign construction company would build Ropotamo Plaza - a new Sofia skyscraper
A foreign construction company would build Ropotamo Plaza, a skyscraper to replace the former Ropotamo restaurant by Tsarigradsko Shosse, once the investor, International Capital Group, receives a building permit.
Residents of the adjacent apartment building, however, object the plan, even though International Capital Group and the Sofia municipality own the land where the apartment building now stands, as well as the site of the future skyscraper beside it. Apartment residents have only the right to construction. The investor has offered them to divide the land, but they have refused the offer and have brought the project to court.
The British-Spanish construction company specialises in high-rise constructions and bridges. If the project gets the go-ahead, it will meet all European construction standards, International assures. In addition to hiring a foreign construction company, they have trained their own engineers abroad.
MORE ABOUT ROPOTAMO PLAZA
The tower is being built on the place where untill yesterday was sitting Restorant Ropotamo - one of the best places 15-20 years ago. It was demolished, and they announced this new highrise. It will have an estimated floor count of 30 (+/- 2 or 3) and an estimated height ot 103 meters/338 feet. The building will have 4 underground floors that will be used for 200 parking spaces and 25-50 more on the ground. The tower will house the new version of Restorant Ropotamo, SPA Center, Pool, Fitness Center, a small Mall, 7 floors of offices and the rest will be high class expensive residential apartaments. There is a possibility that instead of the offices, the floors will be used for a “5-or-more stars” hotel. The building will be the first one to have an own 30-meter long tunnel which will allow cars to get to the parking spaces. On the ground the building will be surrounded by water and a small park. All of this will be great news for the people who will live there, but they will have to pay quite a lot for that. The building will have two energy and water sources and the maker claimed that it will be built entierly to furfill all of EU reglaments…
If done right, this one will try to claim the title of the highest building in Sofia . The current highest building is Hotel Rodina - 104 meters. It was built in 1981 and has 25 floors. It is followed closely by two other buildings that are 99 and 98 meters tall. They are even older - built in 1979 and 1976 respectively. So the new one will actually be one of the first newly built highrises over here.
Thursday, March 29th, 2007
Odessa Property ot invest 40 million Euro in office centre in Bulgarian capital
Investment fund Odessa Property plans to allocate nearly 40 million euro in the construction of an office centre close to Business Park Sofia. The building will be set up on a plot located between Alexander Malinov Boulevard and Sofia’s ring road. Last year Sofia’s chief architect Petar Dikov announced the development, and Odessa Property Bulgaria has already launched the procedure to receive the documents needed to start construction. Work on the project is to begin in the summer of 2007.
The project itself and the investment in the facility have not been defined yet, company representatives said. According to plans the office building will meet all international standards. Plans feature a 27-storey high construction, which could be taken down to 21 or 22 floors because of high expenditure. Initially space in the centre will be offered for rent after which the project will be sold to a major investor.
Pari Newspaper
Thursday, March 22nd, 2007
70 hotels offered for sale in Varna coastal region
Just before the summer season’s beginning, 70 hotels in the Varna region are offered for sale. Hotels in Golden Sands resort have the highest prices. A four-star hotel in the resort is offered for EUR 25 million. Most of the offers are for small-sized family hotels. Because of the strong competition owners could not pay off their bank loans and are forced to sell their property.
The average sale price of the 70 hotels is about EUR 1000 a sq m, which is less than the average sale price for an apartment in city center of Sofia or Varna. In the neighbouring Dobrich region, 50 holiday properties are offered on the market. One of the most attractive offers is for the ethnographic complex . The asking price for Chiflika is EUR 459 000.
Standart Daily
Wednesday, March 21st, 2007
Komfort business center will offer highest office rental prices in Varna
Construction has already began in biggest Bulgarian coastal city Varna of the Komfort business center. According to investors Atanas Kosturkov, manager of Komfort Ltd, and Dimitar Iliev, manager of D-Trance Ltd, the construction will be finished within 18 months.
The cost of the 3.5 mln euro development will be partially covered by the investors with the remainder of the financing coming as bank loans. The 6,500 business center will offer Class A open-plan office space with rental prices from 20 euro/sq m. Rental levels at the competing Business Park Varna near Varna Airport vary from 10 to 15 euro/sq m.
The Komfort business center will be located opposite to the building of the Varna city hall, a site that will accommodate a further two office buildings. One is being developed by property investment company Landmark while the second one is a project by Cargoexpress, the Opel dealer for the Varna area. The buildings will share a 2 levels underground parking for 200 cars.
Dnevnik.bg