Housing prices in the Bulgarian capital Sofia have stabilised, with declines observed for small dwellings, according to real estate agency Bulgarian Properties and credit company Creditex & Hypocredit.

This comes against the backdrop of weaker new home construction, with the number of new building permits diminishing by one-third over the past year, according to the National Statistical Institute (NSI).

This builds up vacuum on the market that prevents the prices of finished residential properties from going down. Another factor is banks’ fresh desire to lend, which makes buyers more stubborn in negotiating prices, according to Creditex & Hypocredit.

"Two months before the end of 2010, we can summarise that this year is headed to become a zero year for the real estate market with no significant change in either deal volumes, or buy/sell offers in comparison with 2009," said Polina Stoykova, chief operating officer of Bulgarian Properties.

She highlighted that achieving balance and stability is a key milestone for the Bulgarian property market, which grew at a fascinating speed before prices plummeted in 2009 in the meltdown.

The average selling price for Sofia homes was 840 euro a sq m in the third quarter, which is down by 30 euro sequentially, according to Bulgarian Properties data. Prices hit a 740 euro a sq m low in August. In September, demand for luxurious apartments lifted the average price to 997 euro a sq m.

Source: Dnevnik.bg