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Latest News
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New Record in Property sales for 2006
Last year the number of Britons living in Bulgaria doubled, with 4,000 people now leaving the UK to live overseas every week. Reasons cited for moving to Bulgaria are EU Membership, changes in lifestyle, low prices, long term investment, the development of major tourism and the expansion of low-cost airline routes to name but a few.
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Property Tax Valuations Up 20%
New amendments to the Local Taxes and Fees Act have meant all property valuations will increase by 20% as of 1st January 2007. Bulgaria’s parliament adopted the amendments citing an increase in market prices over the last year.
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EU Entry Fuels Property Interest
The percentage of UK people looking to buy in Bulgaria has recently increased by 40%, with EU membership the driving force behind the new interest. Whilst Spain and France remain the most popular with the British public, this is due largely to the fact that these are still the most popular holiday destinations as well. For the 2006 summer season Bulgaria reported an 8.3% increase in foreign tourists and this is a trend that will only continue to rise in the next few years, which should also see the number of foreign investors rising as well.
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President Parvanov Re-Elected
Georgi Parvanov has won a second five-year term during Bulgaria’s November Elections. He secured 75.3% of the votes in a landslide victory over Volen Siderov.
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Major Plan for Better Roads
Whilst it is obvious what Bulgaria has to offer the tourist, i.e. beautiful coastline, old cities and villages, ski slopes, palaces, museums and an abundance of history, sadly getting around from place to place is not always easy. This is due to a lack of major roads that can take you from place to place in reasonable speed and comfort. However, with EU membership just 2 months away the Bulgarian government have announced a EUR 9 billion road investment programme n order to double the length of highways and improve the state of hundreds of kilometres of lesser roads.
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Eastern European Property Prices Leap
While major countries around the world are experiencing slight falls in house price inflation it has been confirmed that Eastern European countries are experiencing faster growth than anywhere else in the world. In Bulgaria growth is buoyant with a reported figure of 20.5%, and other countries in the region such as Latvia have experienced house price inflation of 45.3%. All good news for the second home investor of course
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Sofia Airport Launches New runway
It has been announced that the old runway at Sofia Airport is now closed and the new one is open. Longer than the old one at 3,600m it is now suitable for even the largest aircraft. This also means it should be quieter for the citizens of Sofia as planes will no longer take off directly over the city.
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Bulgaria to join the EU from 1 January 2007
It has been confirmed today that Bulgaria will be invited to join the EU in January 2007, as anticipated. Of course, this is excellent news to those who have or are seeking to invest in Bulgarian property, as the economy should see a substantial boost as more and more money begins to pour into the country. As past history suggests, many analysts anticipate that property prices will rapidly
increase over the next few years as it has done in other member countries post-accession.
The head of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso welcomed the people and authorities of Bulgaria for their efforts to meet the requirements for membership in the EU. Mr Barroso announced the official approval of the country in the EU. The conclusion of the commission is that Bulgaria is ready to take on the rights and obligations for EU membership.
It was only in May 2006, that the Commission considered that "Bulgaria should be prepared for EU membership on 1 January 2007, provided that it addresses a number of outstanding issues." Mr Barroso remarked that since then the country has made far reaching efforts and addressed many of the challenges. He added that the support for the accession date is a result of “rigorous, fair and objective assessment”.
Even prior to the accession of Bulgaria in the union, the country proved an increasingly popular tourism destination. The huge investments in the tourism sector has lead to huge improvements in the quality of services and turned Bulgaria into a preferred holiday destination and a property investors paradise for many European citizens.
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Bulgaria Welcomes Foreign Bargain Hunters
Anybody who's anyone in Europe these days is buying a vacation retreat. And they're not doing it close to home, but in Bulgaria, Croatia and Morocco, the Newsweek writes in an article, entitled "Room with a View".
The trend is particularly pronounced among northern Europeans looking for a place in the sun, says the author Stryker Mcguire.
"Along the Mediterranean "sun belt," stretching from the Greek islands to southern Iberia, second homes make up 10 to 15 percent of total national housing stocks. The strongest markets are, unsurprisingly, France and Spain, the world's first and second largest tourist destinations. But demand is so strong (and the investment prospects so promising) that the hottest hot spots today are countries like Croatia and Bulgaria."
750,000 Britons now own second homes on the Continent, a privilege which is no longer only for the rich, show estimates of Caxton FX, a foreign-exchange company in London.
The Brussels bureaucracy that so many Europeans love to hate is one of the great driving forces behind the boom, the Newsweek argues.
"Aside from facilitating travel and allowing Europeans from one country to buy property in another, the EU has doled out hundreds of millions of euros in "structural funds"- "money that goes to new members for infrastructure improvements. This largesse has transformed countries that once lagged behind their neighbours."
Newsweek describes the second-home phenomenon as the European Dream come true, but claims that the establishment of a United States of Europe will never come into being because of anti-EU sentiment. The author claims that the drivers behind second-home ownership are personal - they're about family, fun and potential financial gain.
"The local people welcome foreigners because they bring money," says Boyko Borissov, the mayor of Sofia, Bulgaria. "I don't see any clashes or obstacles."
Particularly welcoming are would-be home sellers who've seen their properties rocket in value as Western bargain hunters head farther east. In the past year alone, prices in Bulgaria have climbed at least 25 percent while remaining among the lowest in Europe.
Published: August 15, 2006
Source: Sofia News Agency
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Bulgaria Top Destination for 2007 - Survey
Bulgaria has topped as number one up-and-coming destination for travellers, according to a freshly released survey.
The forecasts published by online travel company, Opodo, suggest that Bulgaria will be the top emerging destination for 2007. Close runner-ups to the Balkan state are Russia, Morocco and Cuba.
According to Neil Mott, Opodo's UK country manager, 2006 has seen a strong rise in travel to Eastern European countries since whilst being accessible, they still hold a certain "mystique" for the traveller.
"Bookings to Bulgaria have risen by 40% in the last six months and with the prospect of joining the EU in January 2007, we expect to see a significant increase in the number of tourists heading there to take advantage of the Euro," Mott added.
Bulgaria, which shares borders with Romania, Turkey and Greece, has an extensive coastline along the edge of the Black Sea, the pan-European online travel company noted.
A large number of holidaymakers and tourists are still choosing to travel to Australia, which came number five on the list, according to Opodo, ranking Brazil and India as sixth and seventh respectively.
Dubai was listed as the eighth destination in the top ten, with China and South Africa coming in at number nine and number ten.
Opodo predicts that the forthcoming Beijing Olympic games in 2008 and the 2010 World Cup, to be hosted by South Africa, will help draw tourists to those nations.
Published: August 4, 2006
Source: Sofia News Agency
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BA Makes Varna-London Flights Year-Round
British Airways announced Monday that its flights from Varna to London's Gatwick will continue to fly throughout the whole year.
The British company opened, the Varna destination in March with two evening flights weekly, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and added early Monday and Tuesday flights in May to cope with the increased demand over the summer.
The Varna - London line proved quite successful for the company, just as we expected, Emil Delibashev, BA Sales Manager for Bulgaria said.
Source: Sofia News Agency
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Bulgaria continues being property investment hotspot - 137% return rate for Q2, 2006
Property investment group Assetz reported Bulgaria confirms its standing as leading property investment hotspot.
For the second quarter of 2006 the return rate of Bulgarian property was 137 per cent, Assetz reported. In March the figure reached 116 per cent.
Decreasing mortgage rates in the country make borrowing cheaper. Deposits decreased as well, guaranteeing investors bigger returns.
All these developments confirmed Bulgarian property remains an attractive option for property seekers. The strentghening of the country's tourism sector and the availability of low-cost flights further increased the appeal of the local property market, Assetz said.
Assetz reported that the Greek and Polish property markets have also seen improvement in key indicators. Prices in Poland increased by nearly 25 per cent for the first six months of 2006.
The Spanish market also maintains its growth.
Assetz representatives said the expansion of the EU provided more options for property seekers interested in destinations abroad. Emerging markets like Bulgaria and Poland offered excellend investment return opportunities.
Traditional destinations like France and Cyprus remained attractive for property seekers looking for stability and already established buying procedures.
Published: June 26 2006
Source: Sofia Echo
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Bulgarias Bansko to Develop Year Round Tourism Opportunties
Bulgaria's Bansko mountain resort would search for ways to attract tourists year-round, The Independent reported.
Until recently Bansko was the typical ski resort with booming tourism activity in the winter season and almost empty during the summer. Now investors seek to attract tourists during the summer, offering services like bike and hiking trails, horseback-riding lessons and golf courses, The Independent said.
Since 2003 over 3,000 British have invested in Bansko attracted by the resort's development opportunities in view of its 2014 Winter Olympics host application.
The Independent compared Bansko to mountain resorts in Spain from few years ago, saying it was 'booming after decades of stagnation'. Statistics revealed that the resort registered a 62 per cent increase in the number of British tourists in 2005. British amount to 80 per cent of the foreigners visiting the resort.
The high interest resulted in a 25 per cent increase in property prices in the region. The Independent said that the tendency was likely to last and predicted a 20 per cent real estate price increase for 2006.
Some of the factors influencing the property market include the expected significant improvement of infrastructure after the country's EU accession, and the better revenue opportunities now that Bansko would become a year-round resort.
Published: June 21 2006
Source: Sofia Echo
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British Man Buys Resorts, Names It After Himself
Call him vain if you will, but a British man wealthy enough to buy an entire resort off the coast of Bulgarian has decided to name his new piece of property after himself. Scott Alexander, 31, and a multi-millionaire, has already been dubbed the vainest man in Great Britain by devoting one wall of his mansion in Manchester, England to himself with an almost $15,000 worth portrait of himself. According to Ananova.com, Alexander says of his purchase: "I've decided to call it Alexander, which I suppose is quite cheeky. It is just a bit of fun. The Bulgarian name is difficult to pronounce." And for his reason as to why he chose Bulgaria, he adds: "Bulgaria is definitely an up-and-coming country. I think there will be a massive property boom over there. It has golden beaches, the weather is hot between May and October, the food is fantastic, and cheap too."
Published: June 9, 2006
Source: http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7003852346
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Bulgaria Air Launches Bourgas- London Flights
Starting today until the end of the summer season, national flag carrier Bulgaria Air would offer direct flights from Bourgas to London.
The two-way ticket costs 199 euro and flights will occur twice a week, on Tuesday and on Friday. All passengers on the first flight received a bottle of Bulgarian white wine as a gift from the air carrier, Bulgarian National Radio reported.
The new flight is part of the company's strategy to offer trips to some preferred destinations. A number of British plan to spend their summer holiday in Bulgaria and others are interested in property purchase.
As a result of this interest Bulgaria Air decided to start offering direct flights to the Bulgarian seaside, Bulgaria Air managing director Zlatin Sarustov said.
In the end of next month Bulgaria Air would start performing direct flights from Bourgas to Madrid and to Dublin. Since May Bulgaria Air offers flights from Varna to Amsterdam and to Madrid.
Published: June 1, 2006
Source: http://www.sofiaecho.com/article/bulgaria-air-starts-bourgas-london-flights/id_15566/catid_67
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Increasingly high optimism in Bulgaria
Accession to the European Union is inevitably going to play a central role in the future of property investment in Bulgaria.
Bulgarian property is already proving popular with investors looking for long-term capital growth, but there is no doubt that accession to the EU will encourage many more to purchase properties in the country with a view to capitalising on the extensive house price growth that will presumably ensue.
The road to EU membership has certainly been a bumpy one for Bulgaria and reports on its progress have let officials know that there is still some work to do. Despite this, financial experts in the country are seemingly confident that everything is on track to join on January 1st next year. The implications for property investment could be immense.
Speaking to the Sofia News Agency, Mr Maxim Behar, head of the Bulgarian Business Leader Forum, said: "I am even more optimistic than before. I am sure that we are going to join the EU on January 1st 2007. The tone of the monitoring report is very positive."
The news agency reports that one of the chief roles of the Bulgarian Business Leader Forum is to encourage transparency and promote good ethics in the Bulgarian business sphere. These issues are all central to Bulgaria's accession to the EU and there appears to be a great deal of confidence that things are moving in the right direction.
As EU accession draws closer, the Bulgarian property market is also beginning to benefit from increased access. More and more airlines are now taking advantage of high demand from investors, with particular interest being shown in the Black Sea resorts and around the ski slopes in Bansko, Borovets, Pamporovo.
The Bulgaria News Network reports that Bulgaria Air has now launched summertime flights from the Black Sea town of Burgas to London and it is a move that makes it even easier for investors to investigate their chosen areas.
Zlatin Sarastov, CEO of Bulgaria Air, mentioned that British nationals are now choosing Bulgaria as a destination for their main summer vacation, while others are looking to buy coastal properties.
It is thought that national carriers will soon run flights between Bourgas and Madrid as well as Burgas and Dublin, while Bulgaria Air already has a couple of routes between European capital cities and Varna.
Bulgarian officials are continuing to work on the country's weaker areas and it is looking increasingly like things will be in place for accession to the EU early next year.
Because it offers diverse opportunities for property investment ranging from ski chalets to beach houses, there is a great deal of hope that growth in the Bulgarian property market will be rapid once membership is achieved. With numerous airlines now offering flights to the country for competitive prices, it would seem that the foundations for this expansion are well and truly in place.
Published: June 1, 2006
Source: Assetz
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Bulgaria: Europes Most Inexpensive Tourist Destination
For a third consecutive year Bulgaria maintained its position as Europe’s cheapest tourism destination, a survey by Thomas Cook International Tourism Agency said.
The Thomas Cook survey is based on evaluation of the 16 most commonly saught tourism products in 25 countries, Bulgarian National Radio reported.
The cheapest destination worldwide for the third time is the Indian state of Goa, offering the lowest prices for the 16 products like beer, lunch at a restaurant and the approximate cost of a taxi ride.
Although Bulgaria is the cheapest destination in Europe, it still remains more expensive than Goa, Brazil and Tunis. Focus news agency reported Bulgaria offered the cheapest beer with prices lower than 0.9 pounds a litre. In comparison, the same amount would cost 1.15 pounds in Croatia.
Daily meals in Bulgaria cost seven pounds or 0.5 pounds less than in Turkey. Tourists in Croatia and Spain will pay respectively 12 and 10.56 pounds for a day's provisions.
Romania has a poor tourist destination image abroad and was not included in the survey. Among the reasons for the lack of popularity was the bird flu outbreak and the VAT problems, Focus reported.
Published: May 31, 2006
Source: sofiaecho.com
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The changing face of European property investment
With property investment television programmes dominating the listings, it is inevitable that real estate is beginning to attract more and more potential investors.
Most of these programmes are also becoming increasingly adventurous in terms of the places they cover, which is having a direct result on the investment patterns of UK residents.
In a report for Antara News, for instance, journalist David Burrows says that many investors are beginning to turn away from France and Spain in search of better value. He suggests that Bulgaria is a prime example, in that prices in the country are still exceptionally low but experts are predicting something of a boom before long.
"The EU may be balking at Bulgaria's failure to rein in organised crime but second-home hunters seem to have no worries," pointed out Mr Burrows.
The Sofia Echo has today reported that the coastal resort of Sozopol is seeing the highest demand for real estate at the moment. Referring to a report in 24 Chassa, the publication points out that the seaside resorts of Tsarevo and Ahtopol are also experiencing high demand, with slightly cheaper prices in both of these areas.
Bulgaria does have an advantage over many of its near neighbours in that it offers a hugely diverse selection of opportunities for property investors. There is great potential around the Black Sea regions but there has also been staggering growth in Bansko, with investors taking advantage of the rising number of holidaymakers heading over for cheap ski breaks each year.
While it may seem a small point, Bulgarian property is also benefiting from the fact that many investors are simply looking for a change and there is a certain kudos associated with buying a property somewhere slightly out of the ordinary.
When added to the fact that experts are predicting that prices will soar in Bulgaria in the next few years, it is inevitable that the country's popularity is continuing to climb.
There is clear evidence of this already, as noted in the report by Mr Burrows. Rupert Lee-Browne, from currency exchange specialists Caxton FX, said that 50 per cent more of his clients were moving money to the country when compared to last year.
He went on to say that a huge amount of money was being invested in upgrading infrastructure while there was a 40 per cent increase in hotel occupancy rates during the ski season.
The ski season is in fact becoming central to many investment projects, not least because properties in these areas are still cheaper than in the ski resorts. Borovets, Pamporovo and Bansko are all popular with buy-to-let investors as they all offer rentals in the summer as well as the winter.
While occupancy levels are clearly down in the summer and rents are lower, capital appreciation is perhaps the greatest consideration and expected EU accession in the next year should play a huge role in giving a free rein to this potential.
Published: May 23, 2006
Source: Caxton FX
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New horizons for holiday homes
Jo Thornhill, Mail on Sunday
HARDLY a night goes by without one TV programme or another extolling the virtues of buying a property abroad.
And with house prices rocketing and the boom in low-cost airlines, it seems we do not need much persuading. Thousands take the plunge each year with the Spanish costas, French countryside and Florida beach resorts top of the list. But the traditional holiday home destinations face increasing competition from newcomers such as Bulgaria, Hungary, Dubai, Australia and Cape Verde off the coast of West Africa.
Foreign exchange specialist HIFX says 10% of all inquiries it receives about buying property abroad relate to Bulgaria, and it has seen purchases by Britons there rise by almost 40% since the start of the year.
But not everyone is looking for a home in the sun. Will Henry fell in love with the spectacular landscape of Lapland during a Ray Mears survival course three years ago.
But to buy his dream home - a log cabin in Yllas, the ski resort and location of the famous Santa Claus trips in Finnish Lapland - he had to buy off-plan, meaning a gamble on currency rates.
Will, a video producer from Sherborne, Dorset, bought the split-level, two-bedroom cabin, complete with sauna, at the end of last year. The building, which will be completed this summer, required payment in stages, so Will locked into a sterling/euro exchange rate.
'I liked the idea of buying my euros in advance,' says Will, who is married to Margaret, a copywriter, and has two children, Callum, six, and Carys, three. 'I got a much better deal than I would have at my bank.'
Robin Haynes, director at foreign exchange specialist Foreign Currency Direct, says consumers who use High Street banks can end up thousands of pounds worse off because they are not offered the best rates.
'If you have stage payments to make on an off-plan property, exchange rate movements can have a significant impact on the final price,' he says. 'So it is worth your while fixing the sterling cost in advance.'
Published: May 17, 2006
Source: Mail on Sunday
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There’s no place like home...?
by Lucy Cooper
What makes a home? Family, friends; belonging to a community, a village, a city, a nation? Why do people choose to uproot themselves from their existing home to make a new one in a different country? What are the consequences of this for the citizens of the second country?
Professor Judith Allen from Westminster University, London, UK, and Dr Iskra Dandolova from the Institute of Sociology of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences in Sofia are working on a project which addresses these questions and more in examining the increasing trend of migration of British citizens to Bulgaria.
The West to East migration of UK citizens investing in land and property in Bulgaria has generated strong local reactions, both positive and negative.The processes of UK settlement in Bulgaria raise questions reflecting the issues involved in creating nationally mixed communities as opposed to nationality-based enclaves in the context of EU integration. By interviewing a variety of people – Brits and Bulgarians – in the Bourgas (south Black Sea coast) and Elhovo (southeastern Bulgaria) regions, Allen and Dandolova began to build up a profile of British citizens settling in Bulgaria, the reasons for their moves, and the impressions they were making on the Bulgarian communities they entered. They presented some of their findings in “British Citizens Settling in Bulgaria”, a talk delivered for the English Speakers Union, Bulgaria at the One World British-Bulgarian Information and Training centre, in April.
Movement of the people “I’ve studied migration figures til I’m blue in the face and and it’s not just that Bulgarian figures are missing, basically, but I think that there’s a new phenomenon now happening in Europe,” says Allen. “The notion of ‘free movement of people’ is taking on a new meaning and none of the national statistics can cope with this.”
She has coined the phrase “European circulatory migration” to refer to this phenomenon in which people are moving much more frequently between countries. “Academic literature talks about where they move to as a second home, but what we were looking at is people who were making their first home in Bulgaria.”
This raises questions concerning what the notion of “home” actually means.
Home is where the heart is?
“Why does someone move to a new place altogether and say: ‘this is my home’, rather than saying, ‘my home is in London, or Nottingham, or Preston, or someplace else’?” Allen asks.
The fact that more Brits are calling home somewhere other than Britain is increasingly obvious, and is also confirmed by statistics that the two discovered. Last winter, about eight per cent of heating allowance payments for pensioners were made outside of Britain. This means that eight per cent of British pensioner households were living outside of Britain. “Eight per cent of people over the age of 65 is quite a large number.” They also discovered from data from a life insurance survey that 25 per cent of people living in Britain are dissatisfied with living there. “That’s a quarter of the population that’s dissatisfied with living in Britain.” So, what are the reasons behind this dissatisfaction?
Dissatisfaction in Britain Deterioration of working conditions was found to be a large factor in this feeling of dissatisfaction with life in Britain. “People are working very much harder now than they worked 10 or 15 years ago and many forms of work which were secure are now casual,” says Allen. She cites the example of one man they spoke to, a lorry driver, who had been made redundant five times. “He could always get another job, but he was tired of being made redundant.”
“It’s sad because we had – or we thought we had – a left wing government, but somehow it didn’t work that way,” she says.
A second factor, connected to this, is England’s welfare state system and the “benefit trap”.
“The welfare state in Britain means that if you’re not working and you’re claiming social benefit it’s very difficult to start working. We met people in Bulgaria who were very dynamic, but because of the way the English system stopped them from being dynamic, found coming Bulgaria was a tremendous relief and found work they wanted to do.”
Another contributing factor was related to ideas about belonging and community, which Allen says can be summed up in three common English utterances:
“It takes knowing someone 10 years to become a friend.”
“Do you belong to this village?”. “No, we won’t belong to this village until at least one of our family is in the cemetery.”
“People keep themselves to themselves.”
In contrast, Brits perceived everyday behaviour in Bulgaria as very friendly, very warm and very welcoming, the reverse of the their perceptions of their British “neighbours”.
Other, more general, factors connected to people’s choice to make their new home in Bulgaria were to do with life changes, “points in our life when we lose key relationships”. These included: retirement; the death of a spouse; and divorce. One way of dealing with these changes, says Allen, is to move to another country and form different relationships and reconstruct ourselves in relation to these new relationships.
“Older people (we spoke to) had frequently sold a place where they’d raised the children. So-called ‘emancipation of the children’ often linked with retirement and a lump sum of money.” This meant people could buy a small house in Britain to rent out while they lived in Bulgaria in their “third age”, and which would act as security for their “fourth age”. But this house in Britain “is not their home, their home is in Bulgaria, there’s no emotional attachment.”
Physical investment, the idea that “there is no better way to make a place your home than to actually build it,” is also important in establishing a new fixed co-ordinate to call home. Often people settling in Bulgaria are involved in actually building their new home, or at least invest a lot of time and energy in improvements or renovation of existing buildings. Dandolova points out that this is a reason why owner occupation is so important.
But once the physical environment of the home is established, what of the this emotional attachment to the wider environment, to neighbours, a village or city?
The British on Bulgarians Britain is not a “gift culture” and Brits see the exchange of goods such as a neighbour giving them a bag of tomatoes from their garden as unusual. “They see Bulgarians as very neighbourly, and perhaps over-interpret a bit something that is customary behaviour,” says Allen.
“Generally people balanced extreme dependency because they don’t have the language, with gratitude for people that helped them,” she says.
However, she says, “They were very confused by the complexity of the bureaucratic process. (though this shared by Bulgarians too I think!). They were sometimes suspicious of it too.”
They found the banking system to be “like England 30 years ago”, and, therefore, manageable, but people were unable to “read” the cities to find the things that they needed, as the urban environment was not “legible”. However, this was noticeably changing, with the introduction of signs in Cyrillic and English.
The British were impressed by the way property transfer is organised. “The process of documentation and transfer, etc. – the English keep dreaming of getting to that stage,” says Allen, herself an experienced property professional. The ease of buying property in Bulgaria and the desire to buy went hand in hand.
Allen and Dandolova said that the attitude of the Brits towards the Bulgarians was overall very good. But what of their “hosts”?
Bulgarians on The British “One thing Bulgarians cannot understand is why English people don’t have vegetable gardens,” says Allen. Also, a common perception was that English incomes are very high. That’s one reason why it’s very important to understand why Brits come to live in England, says Allen. She gives the example of a single mother they met who had two children. Her income was not enough to feed the children nutritiously in England, but “that income is huge by Bulgarian standards and the ability to receive benefits across borders means she’s perceived as well off in Bulgaria.” The same applied to pensioners. Left with the choice of “heating or eating” in England, they were relatively materially wealthy in Bulgaria.
Many Bulgarians appreciated the dynamism of the Brits, who worked hard to make improvements to properties, but overall the attitudes of the Bulgarians that they spoke to towards Brits was mixed.
The perceptions surrounding economic issues appeared to play quite a substantial part in these attitudes. Brits coming to Bulgaria have a form of “social promotion”, their status is increased, says Allen. “Eighty pounds in Bulgaria goes a long way; it goes nowhere in England, it’s hard to live on that.”
People’s reasons for settling in Bulgaria were both economic and emotional. On an emotional level, people feel Bulgaria to be their home because they they feel “it’s where I work, where I built my home, it’s where, after a big change in my life, I came for refuge and comfort.” They are attracted to the hospitality and welcoming neighbourliness of Bulgarians- “but probably don’t realise how much Bulgarians discuss them!” Allen concludes.
Allen and Dandolova conducted their research with funding form the British Academy as a year-long feasibility study. They are now working on securing further funding and considering which of the many avenues their work has opened up to pursue.
The One World Information and training Centre is located at 22 Veliko Turnovo Street, Sofia.
Published: May 23, 2006
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Property investors observe Bulgarias progress
The European focus is very much on Bulgaria and watching intently are those in the property investment business.
In the last few years, Bulgaria has developed at an impressive rate and the fact that the country is being considered for EU membership is testament to this.
Growth in the Bulgarian property market has been very impressive even without EU accession and the country is already making strides in terms of its attractiveness to tourists and investors.
To its advantage, Bulgaria is able to appeal on a number of fronts, thanks to its rapidly improving ski resorts, the popular Black sea regions and a burgeoning business capital in the form of Sofia.
The ski resorts have enjoyed a particularly strong period, drawing in high levels of investment to cater for the rising number of visitors last year. Bidding for the 2014 Winter Olympics, Bulgaria is also managing to successfully market itself as an alternative to countries such as France. The forthcoming ski season will see further improvements, with more and more property developments and further investment in ski facilities. It is an area that is likely to appeal to buy-to-let investors as the ski region's soaring popularity will inevitably lead to a rise in the demand for good rented accommodation.
There is a real sense of momentum in Bulgaria and a collective resolution to prepare correctly for EU membership. Once the basic problems within the country are addressed, the country truly is in an exceptional position in terms of its attractiveness to investors and excitement in the property industry is continuing to build.
Published: May 19, 2006
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Press praises Bulgaria’s property market
The Wall Street Journal and London-based newspaper The Independent have published articles praising property market opportunities in Bulgaria.
In an April 18 report in The Independent, which describes Bulgaria as a “beautiful country”, writer Robert Nurden says that property investment in the country falls into four main categories.
The first is in the capital city, Sofia, which is “growing economically and geographically faster than any other former East European capital”. The property boom has now hit the centre, with locals themselves pitching into the market, always a good sign, the report says.
“With the country on the threshold of EU membership – and entry into the euro itself likely in about three years’ time – an international and transitory population in this ‘engine of the country’s growth’ is inevitable. This means a huge demand for good rented accommodation.”The Independent says that an average, two-bedroom, newly built apartment in the centre sells for between 69 000 pounds and 87 000 pounds (195 245 to 246 190 leva), and values are “rising almost by the day”. The rent from such an apartment would be up to 700 pounds a month, according to Robert Jenkin of estate agents Bulgarian Dreams.
“‘These are fantastic investment opportunities in a city that is becoming more cosmopolitan and whose economy is stable and performing well,’” he is quoted as saying.
The mountains provide opportunity number two, The Independent states.
The report praises the infrastructure at Bansko, and says that in the past two years, it has added on a large number of apartment blocks geared to the winter season. In Bansko, a typical two-bedroom, newly built apartment costs 71 000 pounds, “with the mouth-watering prospect of a rise in values of about 20 per cent a year”.
“The Black Sea, with its sunshine, cheap beer and great food, beckons investors too. Locations such as Sunny Beach may be set to become the new Costa del Sol.” The report says that there are signs that Bulgaria is throwing off its bottom-end-of-the-market image and moving towards building more luxurious properties. The Government has introduced legislation aimed at protecting the coast from the worst gourmandises of the Spanish costas, the report says.
The article quotes estate agent Iliana Yordanova of Home Cottage Bulgaria: “‘But the really canny investment, and one open to those on a low budget, is to buy land. Plots are unbelievably cheap’”.
She continues: “‘If you are prepared to look at undeveloped areas, either by the coast or inland, you can pick up good agricultural land for as a little as eight euro a square metre. The town of Kavarna would command prices of 70 euro a square metre, and Balchik 58 euro. But I have heard of a plot going for three euro a square metre inland’”. On April 19, The Wall Street Journal reported that real estate investors are continuing to flock to Central and Eastern Europe, to the point where there is not enough buying opportunities to go around.
“As countries join the European Union, they are viewed as more stable, making investors more likely to jump in with their money,” the WSJ report says.
Published: May 2, 2006
Source: Sofia Echo
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