За последние 12 месяцев более чем наполовину увеличилась цена на дома, предлагаемые на продажу в балканском городке Априлци,. На данный момент в этом, известном своим чистым воздухом, городке объявлено на продажу 30 домов. Самый дешевый предлагается за 11 000 евро. Он находится в квартале «Зла река», его площадь 36 квадратных метров, а двор - более 500 квадратов. За 310 000 евро предлагается двухэтажный дом площадью 240 квадратных метров и с двором в 1200 квадратных метров. В октябре прошлого года подобное предложение было на 7 000 евро дороже.
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Key Highlights:

• Global house price inflation in Q1 2008 stood at 6.1%, compared to 9.2% in Q4 2007
• Bulgaria, again tops the index as the country with the greatest annualised price growth (31.5%)
• Latvia prices appear to be in freefall, with negative price inflation of -20%, down from over 60% growth during the same period in 2007
• Outside Europe, Singapore and Hong Kong continued to outperform the market, as did Russia Australia, and China

Liam Bailey, Head of Residential Research, Knight Frank, says:
“The Knight Frank Global House Price Index shows that while house price growth in Europe and America continues to slow or even fall, pockets of strong growth remain.”

“Bulgaria continues to confound market fears of oversupply and has so far proved immune to the deceleration seen in much of the continent. Iceland is another surprisingly strong performer with growth of 19.1%. The Baltic region remains in the doldrums, noticeably Latvia and Estonia. Difficult economic conditions, evident in high rates of national debt, are partially to blame for the Baltic woes. The US also continues to experience difficulties, while the far-eastern cities of Hong Kong and Singapore are bright spots on the residential investment horizon.”

“The country by country summary that follows provides an insight to the shifts currently taking place in house prices across the world.”

Overview:
Residential property price inflation continued to slow in the first quarter of 2008, falling to 6.1%, compared to the 9.2% recorded the previous quarter and 9.8% over the 12 months to Q1 2007. The number of markets where prices have fallen has increased, and although there are still locations where price growth is in double figures, at the moment they are the exception rather than the rule. A year ago, 35% of the markets covered by Knight Frank in the Global House Price Index saw house price inflation in double figures. In Q1 2008, this proportion had fallen to just 20%. The geography of the best performing markets is not so clearly delineated as in previous years, when we might have been able to say that growth was strongest in the Far East, or Central and Eastern Europe. Today, the top performing markets are dispersed around the world, with Bulgaria, Singapore, Hong Kong and Jersey being the locations with the highest growth rates.

Europe:
Since Q2 2007, Bulgaria has been the best performing location in the Knight Frank Global House Price Index. While the rate of growth in the price of flats was lower than in previous quarters, it was nonetheless maintained at over 30%, again being driven by the performance of areas bordering Romania such as Ruse and Vidin, as well as the capital Sofia, where year-on-year price inflation exceeded 60%.

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New settlements may appear, others will vanish due to the demographic collapse. There is reorientation in the demand from low-quality and cheap properties scattered around the countryside to gated communities with gardens and sometimes with private pools, brokers say. This trend is set by the clients who give prominence to the comforts and safety of the complexes. Moreover, these sites are sold key-ready which saves the buyer all the finishing works and the security guards guarantee the peace and quiet of the residents. Almost all such developments offer maintenance of the common parts as well.

Some of the developments are set among nature. The houses there range from 2 to over 100 depending on the area of the plot. However, if they are within the limits of a village or a town the optimal number of houses is from 2 to 5, brokers claim. Each house is sold with a private garden or with enough area that would guarantee the ‘breathing space’ of the residents. Such is the project near the village of Avren. Its first part, the so-called Lake House, has already been sold. In principle, the construction of the houses begins after a buyer shows up and lasts from 6 to 8 months. In the case of Avren the investor is a local entrepreneur and the clients are mostly Britons. The other type of development has 15-20 houses. They are built on large plots of land and resemble small holiday resorts. Such is the case with the project near the village of Lyahovo which is set 4 km from the Albena holiday resort and includes 134 houses. The main disadvantage of this type of development is the phased construction which turns the area into a construction site for quite a long time. This problem is overcome when the complex is offered for sale after being completely built. But such projects are a rarity because the entrepreneur plans to receive money from the already built sites and then continue constructing the others.

Prices of houses in gated communities range between 70,000 and 120,000 EUR for total built-up areas of 90 to 170 square meters, as they are set about 10-15 km from a well-known tourist region. The homes in very attractive areas, as is the Delta Hill development at the foot of the Vitosha Mountain, cost up to 250,000 - 300,000 EUR. Experts think that if the new holiday resort boom continues the developments may well appear on Bulgaria’s geographic map. On the other hand, some small villages nestled on the mountain slopes may vanish due to the lack of inhabitants.

City Market, 02.11.07

Bulgaria and Russia rank among countries with highest rates of tax on residential property deals, says Global Property Guide research.

Research examined several types of expenditure including registration fees, real estate agency commissions, taxes for purchase and VAT, 24 Chasa daily reported.

Results for Bulgaria and Romania showed that purchase expenditures were nearly 25 per cent of the property value, the main reason being VAT.

VAT in Bulgaria is 20 per cent and 18 per cent in Russia. This is the factor ranking Romania and Bulgaria on the top positions concerning residential property taxation.

Out of old European Union (EU) countries, Belgium and Italy have the highest expenditures on property deals, the lowest feature Estonia, Slovakia, Litva and Danemark with less than five per cent of the property value.

Expenditures are higher in southern Europe and lower in UK and the Scandinavian countries.

The commission for the real estate agency is usually shared between the seller and the buyer. Research said that it usually ranges between 1.25 and 1.5 per cent for both sides. In Bulgaria the figure is 2.5 per cent to three per cent for both sides.

A property you can buy on your credit card? It is not as improbable as it sounds. Despite surging markets around the world, there are still places where you can pick up something habitable for the price of the average family car.  Rural Bulgaria is a good place to start. There is  a wide range of village houses from just £5,000. But be ready to do some work – and don’t expect an indoor lavatory.

Other former communist countries are slightly more expensive, but you can buy a country house in Prekmurje, the picturesque wine-growing region of northeast Slovenia, for example, for £17,000.  Or look across the border in Slovakia or Hungary, where £50,000 would buy a house near Lake Balaton, a holiday spot for much of the former communist world.
Keen on a sea view or something in the mountains? You could get either in Bulgaria for as little as £20,000 – but take all those predictions of instant profit with a pinch of salt, as oversupply may keep a lid on future price rises. The Croatian coast is a more upmarket alternative: There are flats five minutes from the beach at Split for £52,444.
Up your credit limit and parts of France, Italy and Spain come within reach. “About a quarter of the properties on our books cost £75,000 or below, mostly in northern and central France,” says Cheryl Townend, of French Property Shop . “Most are two-bedroom semidetached houses, perhaps requiring a little work.”

The shock waves running through Spain’s market are moderating prices there, too. In Andalusia, you can buy a rare inland finca needing renovation for £30,000, or a distinctive cave home near Granada for £55,000. Parts of Italy are also surprisingly cheap.

And don’t forget America: thanks to the weak dollar and the wobbling property market, you can pick up a one- or two-bedroom flat in Florida for less than £70,000. “With price falls of 10% or 15%, there’s now a more realistic chance of rents covering mortgage costs,” says Charles Weston-Baker, head of international sales at Savills. “It’s an unexpectedly good result of a market that has corrected its prices.” Turkey has hundreds of miles of coast and low property prices. And Morocco is emerging as a cut-price alternative to the Costa del Sol. King Mohammed VI’s multi-billion-dollar tourism initiative, 2010 Vision, has earmarked six resorts, five on the Atlantic coast and one on the Mediterranean, for significant development. There are plenty of choices for less than £50,000 in both countries.

Also worth considering is the Egyptian resort of Sharm el Sheikh, which has lots of sun, fairly cheap flights and flats at just £25,000 – although you should watch out for poor build quality.

Not exotic enough? What about a holiday villa on Margarita Island, off Venezuela, for £55,000, or a flat in the Philippines for just £20,000?

Time to start flexing that plastic.

Times Online 

Prices of agricultural land in Karlovo vary from 0,50 euro to 10 euro per sq m, expert.bg reports. Investors interested in agricultural land intend to change the land status and use it for residential or commercial developments.

Plots outside regulation situated on the main road Soifa-Burgas are offered from 8 to 22 euro per sq m. The most expensive plots in Karlovo are those in regulation. Their prices vary from 22 to 35 euro per sq m.

Houses in Karlovo are offered for 300-450 euro a sq m. Apartments are offered for 350 to 500 euro a sq m, depending on the type of construction.

Retired people from Japan, UK and Israel are buying houses in Karlovo and the surrounding villages. Investors from USA are negotiating for the purchase of plots and the construction of holiday villages of kit houses, local agents told expert.bg.

The Bulgarian defence ministry plans to execute swap and sale transactions involving 250 properties around the country in 2007. A total of 108 properties will be swapped for apartments to meet the ministry’s department housing needs. A decision is yet to be taken whether to sell or swap another 80 of the properties.

The list of properties slated for disposal includes the 55.9 ha airstrip in the village of Musachevo some 30 km from Sofia. The ministry is also offering 3 sites with a combined area of 156 ha near the Straklevo airport in the Ruse area and 175 ha in the vicinity of the former military air field in the village of Kondofrei, in the Radomir area.

Some 300 ha of arable land and properties in Sofia’s Bozhurishte residential district will be exchanged for housing units. The list of properties earmarked or sell/swap includes 1.13 ha of land in the village of Enemona, near coastal town Nesebar, and 5 ha in another coastal town, Pomorie.

The defence ministry will swap a 17.2 ha parcel in Razlog and three buildings in the Betolovoto, an area with 2 golf resorts and a number of holiday villages under development.

dnevnik.bg

When you’re in the pub talking to the local barman about life, the universe and what’s what and you discover that they’ve just gone and invested in an off plan ski apartment in Bansko you really know you’ve missed the boat – no offence to the theoretical barman in question, but if everyone and his cat knows that property in Bulgaria is the place to invest money, chances are all the big opportunities have been sold out.

However, Bulgaria is still an attractive, well packaged, accessible location that has room for growth for a few years yet – but what you really need to know are the little known ways to profit from Bulgarian property that will set your investment approach apart from the rest and ensure that your real estate ambitions are realised when other areas of the investment marketplace are saturated…

For example – if you’re thinking of buying an apartment in Sunny Beach or a condo in Bansko think first about the concepts of saturation and oversupply. If on the other hand you’re thinking of a way to promote Bulgaria to the UK baby boomers in search of a safe overseas country with a relatively temperate climate where their pension will take them far further then you’re about to begin to see potential – hint hint!

Away from the madding crowds on the beaches and in the ski resorts, a few investors have begun buying up attractive village properties in communities such as Hotnitza and Rujitza for example where there are already at least a few Brits and they are renovating these properties with a view to selling the ‘lifestyle’ as well as reselling the renovated and pristine property to those hungry for an affordable, attractive retirement retreat.

Targeting a particular buying sector of society such as those Brits approaching retirement age where there is strong demand to own a property as well as a certain amount of affordability and then really getting to grips with understanding that demographic group and what they want from a home is an excellent approach to profiting from Bulgarian property.

Another approach is considering the student market – there are for example at least seven colleges and universities in Varna Bulgaria, very few of which provide accommodation and all of which are actively working to attract and retain greater student numbers – these students need affordable bed-sits, apartments and shared houses and buying such property is currently affordable, it can return a decent and reliable income and be a good long term capital appreciating asset.

Or what about speculatively investing in parcels of land? Or developing commercial premises in developing locations popular with the wealthier overseas buyers? Or what about buying large but more remote properties and developing them as guesthouses and reselling them as a going concern having marketed them to those who enjoy outdoor pursuits…come on, get your thinking caps on, look past the obvious and discover all the little known ways to profit from property in Bulgaria and make your move.

ShelterOffshore.com

FED-UP of a life fraught with Britain’s escalating violence, one Yorkshire family knew they had to make a life-changing move. Sheryl and Del Trott quit Hull for Bulgaria – and in the former communist country they have found a better place for their three children to grow up. Three-bedroomed detached house also costs on average £56,000 and a supermarket shop half the price of here. A decent three-course meal out for two with wine is just £12.50.

The couple also feared Britain’s violent streets. In Hull their eldest son Karl, 18, had been the victim of school bullying, which culminated with him having a knife held to his throat on one of the city’s buses. They put their house, in Holderness Road, east Hull, on the market for £82,000 and began looking for their perfect home in Bulgaria. They found the right place in Bulgaria with a price tag of just £24,000. They then spent £6,000 renovating the 13-year-old property.

After just four months Mrs Trott, a 37-year-old former care home worker, said she and her husband would now never return, mainly because life was more relaxed and also because pressures on family finances were considerably less.

The kids are becoming more violent,” said Mrs Trott, who is originally from Armley, Leeds. Even if the young lads are not out on the streets causing trouble, I still wouldn’t have liked my little ones to be out playing. This is definitely a better place to bring up kids.”

As well as Karl, Mr and Mrs Trott have two younger children, 18-month-old Ellesh and Spencer, three. According to their mother, the children, who don’t start school until the age of seven in Bulgaria, are already picking up the language.

She said: “They already know the basics like how to say hello, thank you and goodbye. We aren’t so good though. We have a phrase book we take everywhere…”

Mr Trott, also 37, has not worked since the move, but is setting up a gardening business serving other English ex-pats. Back home, gardening was just a hobby for the former steel erector.

“One of the best things about living here is that you do not feel vulnerable, as I did in the UK,” said Mr Trott, who was born and brought up in Hull. “Here there is no violence and no threat of violence. There is nobody hanging around on street corners and it is all very family-orientated.

“The only strange thing I saw was last December, when the locals brought their pigs out on the streets to slaughter them. Apparently it is some kind of Christmas tradition.

“The other good thing is the cost of living. We couldn’t live in the UK on the amount of money we spend here, our bills alone there were around £800 a month. I wouldn’t want to move back to England for all the money in the world.”

Yorkshire Post Today

The official statistics for 2006 reads that some 30,000 British citizens have bought real estates in Bulgaria. The Englishmen prefer village houses at the seashore or in the mountains. The places where the Britons settle undergo a real revival.

The Britons are quite conservative and don’t like risks and surprises. It’s a well proved fact that countries where there are many British settlers, like Cyprus, Kenya and Spain, for example, enjoy political and economic stability. If they decide to leave a country this means that they distrust the political regime (Hong Kong, South Africa). After the USA, Canada, Australia and Spain, Bulgaria is one of the Englishmen’s preferred places to live in.

Standartnews Daily

A growth in the price of property is expected in Plovdiv, Sliven and Yambol in 2007.

The property market will fail registering record growth, Industry Watch representative Georgi Stoev said.

In the end of 2006 economists predicted growth rate in the prices of property varying between 10 and 15 per cent. Developments in the beginning of 2007 confirmed these predictions, Focus news agency reported.

Some Bulgarian cities registered steady growth in 2006 but the overall price increase remained within expectations, Stoev said. Major price hikes failed coming true, he said.

Similar developments are expected in 2007. Only some cities could register significant hikes, Stoev said.

Plovdiv features among the cities that are to see major growth. The same could happen in Sliven and Yambol, though the two towns were smaller, Stoev said.

SofiaEcho

The number of the deals with agricultural land reached 92 000 in 2006 which is an increase of nearly 100% compared to the preceding year, said at a press-conference the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Svetla Bachvarova. The growth marked by the market is due to a great extent to the activity of the investment funds focussing on the agricultural properties which are behind more than half of all transactions.

The average market price of the agricultural lands has increased up to BGN 200 per decare that is 20% more compared to 2005.

There is a big increase in the average price of the agricultural land in the north-western regions, as it has reached BGN 162 per decare (40% compared to 2005). The number of the deals in the region has increased by 60%, as nearly half of the lands sold are situated in the region of Vidin, namely 90 000 decares. In the north-eastern region, which remains the most active market in the country in 2006 as well, there are 30% of the deals executed, at an average price of BGN 220 per decare that is an increase by 26% compared to 2005.

During the last year the demand on the territory of the whole country exceeded the offering, which accounts for the increase in the prices and the number of deals. The market intensification is directly connected to the joining to the European Union and to the general agricultural policy of the Union for direct payments per unit of area, said Bachvarova. The stabilization of the market is a result of bringing near the prices in the different regions. The landed funds are also an important factor, as they take part in more than 50% of the deals in 2006.

The European market is extremely conservative regarding the purchase-sale of agricultural land, as there are many serious restrictions. The market price of the properties in Bulgaria is 4-5 times less compared to the average price for the European Union, and most probably it will not become equal in the future 3-4 years according to Deputy Minister Bachvarova. The expected step of an increase in the price of the agricultural land in the coming years will not exceed 10-20%.

According to Bachvarova there is a tendency in 2007 towards a decrease on the market for purchase-sale of agricultural land and strong intensification of renting. There are totally 3.8 million decares granted on lease in 2006. The value of the rent paid in 2006 increased by 20%, which was also the prognosticated increase in the price in 2007. The rents in Bulgaria correspond to 60% of the average value of the rent wanted within the European Union.

There will be a serious increase in the price of the land for non-profit purposes in the coming year. During last year the number of the deals increased by 23% compared to 2005 up to 8596. There are 47 219 decares of land for non-profit purposes sold, which is an increase of 34% to one hundred percents. The average market price remains high, namely BGN 30 543 per decare that is an increase of 7.2%.

The lowest average price has been registered in the north-western region, namely BGN 1134 per decare, followed by the Northern central region – BGN 5261 per decare. There is an increase in prices of 35% registered in the Southern central region compared to 2005 – BGN 8658 per decare.

The activity in the north-eastern region remained in 2006 as well – there was a total number of 14 394 decares of land sold at an average market price of BGN 20 967 per decare, which is an increase of 11% compared to 2005. More than half of all deals are made in the region of Dobrich where the average price is to the amount of BGN 17 000 per decare, and the highest price reported is in the village of Topola, namely BGN 25 000 per decare. The village is attractive for the golf ground under construction, which is situated near it, and the boom of the building of vacation complexes in the region of Kavarna and the region of Balchik. The prices in Varna and Byala are extremely high, as the maximum values per deals there have reached BGN 80 000 per decare.

The number of deals in the south-eastern region remains the same (1334) but the land sold has increased nearly two times, up to 12 326 decares. The average market price decreased by 11% in 2006 compared to the preceding year. The average price of the lands for non-profit purposes on the territory of the Municipality of Sozopol is the highest in the country, namely BGN 190 000 per decare. The maximum price reached in this part of the country is to the amount of BGN 300 000 per decare.

A new trend among foreign investors in Bulgaria is the purchase of whole abandoned villages and hamlets in the Rhodopi Mountain region. Investors planned to develop the villages into residential complexes of closed type, imoti.net said as quoted by mediapool.bg.

The advantage of such deals was that the property purchased could become separate administrative unit to apply for EU subsidy for developing a sparsely populated area. According to mediapool.bg the investors wanted to set up natural settlements where typical architecture and peculiarities of Rhodipian house would be preserved. The settlements had to be keep their natural outlook. Contemporary construction techniques would not be allowed.

Property agents said that foreign investor interest in Rhodopi villages began in the autumn of 2006. A demand boom for such property was expected in the spring and summer of 2007. Houses in the Rhodopi Mountain were offered for and average price of 160 to 170 euro per sq m, imoti.net said. The most expensive property wa located near Pamporovo winter resort.

Imoti.net 

Bulgaria is the ninth most attractive place in the world to invest in. The country is ranked fourth in the Southeast Europe as regards the attracted direct foreign investments, after Russia, Ukraine and Romania. These data are taken from the World Report on Investments, presented by Neil Buhne, UN Resident coordinator for Bulgaria, and Ivo Prokopiev, Chairman of the Confederation of the Employers and Industrialists in Bulgaria.

Statistical data of the Bulgarian Agency for Investments show that the investments in the country for the first six months of the year total US $1.72 billion. By the end of the year, the foreign investments in Bulgaria are expected to gross last year’s amount of US $2.8 billion. The foreign investments in 2007 are expected to be at least US $3.5 billion.

Standart Daily