Fri, Feb 10 2012
The commercial property market in Bulgaria is expected to grow by 300 per cent in the next three to five years, Colliers Bulgaria real estate agency head Atanas Garov said.
Garov took part in a conference linked to the upcoming Balkan Property exhibition (BalPex), investor.bg reported.
All sectors of the property market had been developing dynamically and investment was expected to increase in the next years, Garov said.
Office property market growth was expected to double in the next three years.
BulPex will take place between May 17 and 19. Its main goal is to present various points of view of investors' representatives on the property market on the Balkans.
International companies Engel East Europe, Pinnacle, Development Capital Management, DTZ and the European Bank for Development and Reconstruction (EBDR) feature among forum participants.
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.