Bulgaria

[J hague]

HI
Could anyone give me any advice on the property market in bulgaria Is it a good market to buy in as have seen some very!!!!! cheap property in there for just a few thousand pounds are these good investments ??? and also any ideas what areas are best to buy in ???

any ideas/info would be greatly appreciated

many thanks

Jamie

[brian]

Be careful of scams - property prices in Bulgaria have come down a lot in many areas due to a combination of complete over development and the global price squeeze.

[thetravelbug]

In 2005 and 2006 Bulgaria experienced a massive property boom. I was working as a 'middle person' at the time, helping people come across, travel around Bulgaria, view property and after sales care. People would fly over for a few days, buy 2 or 3 houses and fly home - many have never been back to Bulgaria since!

Many places like Sunny Beach and Bansko were completed overhyped and on paper properties were worth silly prices - over 1000 E/sqm. And of course everyman and his dog became and agent or builder. This, together with the world recession, led to a massive crash around 2009.

Since then prices have basically bottomed out at around 50% of what they were in the height of the boom, you are now looking at prices the same as they were back in 2004 before the boom.

So for buying - now is a brilliant time. There are some VERY cheap properties around but you do need to be careful of area. If buying an apartment make sure it has all proper paperwork. If buying a rural house, make sure it is a decent location. For example there are some villages where every single house appears to be for sale.

If you want help and advice on area let me know. I lived in Bulgaria for around 4 years and still have properties there and go back each year for 3 or 4 months.

Please keep in mind that any really cheap houses need a lot of work. For example I have two old houses for sale for £3000 each, but you will need to spend at least £7000 or £8000 on each in renovation costs. So you maybe better spending £12,000 to £15,000 in the first place on a habitable property.