Sun, Nov 08 2009
Almost 40 000 Britons currently have property in Bulgaria and the demand remains sufficiently high to lead to a steady price increase.
UK daily The Independent said that Bulgaria featured as one of the most attractive destinations for property buyers where one could still buy flats worth 34 000 euro.
Brokers quoted by the paper however warned that investors should no longer expect quick and easy returns.
It is increasingly difficult in the UK to gain profit from property deals on rental purposes. Interest rates in the UK increased five times from 4.5 per cent to 5.75 per cent while rental prices grew insufficiently.
This is the main reason why Britons search for investment opportunities in Eastern Europe and especially in new European Union member countries like Poland and the Czech Republic.
Brokers also advice property buyers to double-check tax rules, rental income and capital gains in overseas countries and be sure that they do not sign any documents they do not understand.
Office rent transactions peaked at 65 000 sq m between July and September 2008, but collapsed to 10 700 sq m in Q3 2009, Forton manager Sergei Koinov said.
Most potential buyers are now opting to buy a luxury flat in the range of 120 000 to 150 000 euro or a single family home for about 500 000 euro.
About 30 000 to 35 000 people employed in the construction sector were facing redundancies in 2010, Bulgaria's Regional Development Minister Rossen Plevneliev said on October 26.
Average market prices of housing in Bulgaria dropped five per cent in July-September, measured quarter-on-quarter, the National Statistical Institute said on October 23 2009.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has released a 43.5 million euro loan to Sofia Municipality, for infrastructure projects worth 88.1 million euro in total