The number of building permits issued in Bulgaria continued to fall in the second quarter of 2011 on an annual basis, extending the downtrend observed in the past four years, according to National Statistics Institute (NSI) data posted on August 1 2011.

In quarterly terms, building permits increased, but this is usual in any year, because it is customary that at this time work on building projects resumes.

Local authorities issued 1319 house building permits between April and June 2011, up by 38.7 per cent on the quarter.

The residential projects approved will include 3032 flats with a combined floor area of 433 501 sq m, registering quarterly increases of 23.4 per cent and 35.5 per cent, respectively.

In annual terms, however, the number of permits went down by 8.2 per cent, while residential units and their floor area fell by a respective 22.9 per cent and 14.8 per cent.

The highest number of permits for new homes was issued in Sofia (157), Plovdiv (151), places adjacent to Sofia (130) and Varna (121).

Administrative permits rose by 81.1 per cent in quarterly terms, but dropped by 15.5 per cent on the year to 67. The buildings will cover 43 203 sq m of built-up area, up 97.2 per cent against the previous quarter, but down 17.7 per cent year-on-year.

The number of permits for projects categorised as "other buildings" jumped by 44.1 per cent in annual terms to 1375 compared with the previous three months, with a gross area of 442 258 sq m, down 30 per cent.

On an annual basis, permits for other projects grew by 17.4 per cent, but their floor area declined 21.7 per cent