Fri, Feb 10 2012
The price increase of residential property in Bulgaria after the country's EU accession is sufficiently higher than expected, research ordered by investor.bg showed.
The price hike concerns both old and new construction in Sofia and in other bigger cities and towns.
The prices per sq m went up three to 12 per cent in Sofia's residential disitrcts of Lyulin, Mladost and Nadezhda.
In some parts of the residential districts, prices wend down by four to five per cent. The growth difference was attributed to the willingness of some property owners to sell their apartments at much higher prices than the normal values.
Residential property prices in the other towns remained almost unchanged in the past four months. Only some parts of the coastal cities of Varna and Bourgas experienced more tangible price increase.
According to an online poll of investor.bg, 30 per cent of the Bulgarians think that EU membership led to a sufficient increase of residential property prices. Another 17 per cent said that the increase was insufficient and 22 per cent said that the increase concerns only some regions of the country.
Average market prices of homes in Sofia fell by one per cent in the fourth quarter of 2011 compared to the same period of 2010, according to the Raiffeisen Real Estate Index, as quoted by Klasa daily.
Proportionately, the number of transactions in leva increased as people reacted to speculation that the euro would disappear.
Nearly all banks are ready to finance between 80 per cent and 90 per cent of the price of a home, provided it is a good building in a large city, Bulgarian daily says.
Property prices in Bulgaria were five to 10 per cent lower in 2011 than in 2010, while initial estimates for this year are that they will remain largely unchanged, with transactions remaining at ‘crisis levels’.
Bulgaria’s capital city Sofia ranks 17th, report says, quoting Global Property Guide.