Quest Bulgaria Property and Lifestyle Magazine

Once upon a time there was a mortgage market for foreigners buying property in Bulgaria! It was during 2005-2008. That was a time of marvellous promises for high ROI from developers, pretty websites of investors impressing with fantastic pictures of long beaches and beautiful nature…

Thinking of setting up a business in Bulgaria or want to move and have the preferred lifestyle of owning and running your own place? Maybe a bar, a hotel or a bed and breakfast? We investigate the pros and cons of buying an existing business and list a pick of commercial real estate which is currently available on the Bulgarian market.

There are strong cultural and lifestyle differences between Britain and Bulgaria and nowhere is this more obvious than in the realm of money. The personal financial profligacy by Britons is starkly contrasted by their Bulgarian counterparts who exercise financial prudence and healthy money habits. Why are the Bulgarians better at thrift than the Brits? Different cultural attitudes to money are at the root, which are highlighted even more in these financially challenging times. The Bulgarians are better placed to embrace long term frugality as a means to weather any financial or economic storm. In the UK, people are only embracing prudence as a short term solution, after years of ridiculous over-consumption and over-spending.

The National Real Estate Association are reporting positive property signals from the ski resorts in Bulgaria. With the falls in prices during the last year, interest is now increasing 'significantly', says the NREA. Both local and foreign investors have expressed interest during the last month as prices have dropped, making property in the Bulgarian ski resorts a value-for-money price. The biggest fall in prices occurred in Bansko, the most popular ski resort, where prices went down by some 50% in the global downturn. Apartments in the town are now selling from 300 euros sq.m., unheard of in the last few years.  The NREA added that they expected price falls to slow significantly as there is less property coming onto the market.

If you wish to make a claim against a Bulgarian company but are resident in another EU country, then the European small claims court can assist you in achieving a rapid and easy solution. European Council Regulation 861/2007 of 11 July 2007, and implemented January 2009, establishes a 'European Small Claims Procedure'. This straightforward procedure was set up to improve and simplify civil and commercial matters where the value of a claim does not exceed 2000 €. Except for Denmark, the legislation applies across all Member States of the European Union.

Before you sign anything for your Bulgarian property purchase, do your own homework for pitfalls. Even if you think you've found the perfect property, at the right price and everything looks good, just take a bit of time out before making an offer to see if there are any potential problems which may affect the property and the sale. These are the kind of things which your lawyer may not concern themselves with but you should investigate for yourself, such as 'horrors' near the property, for example a high polluting factory, which could significantly affect both the value and resale.

What can you do to make sure you buy your Bulgarian property at the lowest possible price? When you bought your current property, you probably made an offer which was less than the price you were really willing to go to but you may still have paid more than you needed to. Few vendors, particularly in today's market, are expecting their asking price to be achieved: although there are one or two vendors in Bulgaria who won't budge a stotinki. The old adage of "You don't make money in property when you sell, you make it when you buy" is true. This article looks at ways to ensure you negotiate the best price when buying your home in Bulgaria.