Fri, Feb 10 2012
Investment fund SECURE Investment Ltd has announced plans to invest nearly 150 million euro in South Eastern Europe, focusing on Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia.
Forty per cent of the fund is owned by Italian investment company Aedes Investissement. In February 2007 it announced plans to invest in the property market in Central and Eastern Europe, investor.bg reported.
The company's strategy envisions investment in partnership with a construction contractor or other investors in residential development projects.
Aedes's participation in SECURE Investment is worth 20 million euro and the company expects a 22 per cent return on investment.
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.