Bansko is rapidly becoming one of Europe’s most exclusive ski resorts, making this the optimum time for investment while the property market is still accessible to the ordinary investor, according to a March 7 media statement by real estate investment company Obelisk International.

“An early sign that Bansko is leading the way forward for Bulgarian tourism is its five-star Kempinski Hotel situated on the edge of the piste, where facilities include a vitamin bar, spa and cigar lounge. The fact that Bansko was chosen as the location for this prestigious hotel, which last month was selected as a member of the Leading Hotels of the World, both confirms the area’s exclusive status and contributes towards a secure and profitable future for all investments in the area,” the statement said.

“Bansko in Bulgaria is showing all the signs that its property market is at that crucial stage, with affordable properties available and a highly positive outlook for the future,” Obelisk International said.

On March 1, news website news.bg said that in February 2007, the economic outlook for Bulgaria’s construction industry remained favourable although the composite indicator of business climate in construction was 0.6 percentage points below its January level.

This conclusion was based on National Statistical Institute data.

The website ascribed the change to “more moderate managers’ assessments and expectations about the business situation in construction enterprises”.

News.bg said that despite the lower assessments about current construction activity, entrepreneurs’ prognoses about development in the industry over the next three months were optimistic (5.5 percentage points increase of the balance indicator). But, at the same time, there had been an increase in the number of clients behind in their payments.

Bulgarian-language media reports in recent days said that price dynamics on Bulgaria ‘s residential property market in 2007 refuted all expert predictions made at the end of 2006. Prices had risen 10 to 15 per cent in the first two months of 2007, reaching the annual levels predicted, Dnevnik daily said. 

Real estate agents said that the market in Bulgaria’s biggest cities like Sofia, Varna and Plovdiv was as dynamic as in December 2006. Buyers were in a hurry to purchase property while prices were still lower than in other European Union member states.

Property sellers were increasing prices for the same reason, Dnevnik said. Some sellers even cancelled their offers to see whether prices would increase even further.

Experts declined to predict what would happen on Bulgaria‘s property market by the end of 2007. Prices will not go down as demand exceeded several times supply in some places, they said.

The market seemed to have skipped the traditional January lull and business was as dynamic as December, said Tihomir Tsakov, owner of the Aristo real estate agency that operates exclusively in Sofia, Dnevnik reported.

The momentum from the end of 2006 had carried over into the first months of 2007, said Valentin Gradev of the Varna-based Gradev real estate agency.