Help and tips on my Crazy ideas

HI ALL....
right this may be a long waffle but here i go...
After loosing all my family ive recently come into £90000 im thinking of coming to bulgaria as i have been thinking of it for a while i want to buy property or land with ideas to start a small holding off grid project and also run a camping type site wanted to be off grid run on solar etc but all i would require is internet access.... i want a property which has a stream running throug not too far a building merchants or a supermarket...
Right heres my questions....
1... do people think il be able to buy somewhere and live simply untill i can get money coming in with the funds i have...?
2... anyone reccomend a trustworthy estate agency to help with the search?
3... anyone reccomend any particular area which may be good to search eg mountains but still want to be near enough to said supermarket that in havent got to drive an hour to get there?
4... i keep seeing to buy land id have to start a company to be able to put land in company name is this true/expencive?
5.. now England is out of EU is a challenge to get a visa
6....is any of this possible or am i nuts?
I know there is probably so much more i need to think of and ask but Il thank now anyone that replys.
Im still tieing up probate in uk so its not like Im arriving next week and il probably have a campervan to live from at first while property work is done i just want simple quite life as this country is going to sh*^e now!
I just want to get help and info from people and here seems like the best place...
Ben 43 currently from devon,Uk - @Ben Johnson 2022

1 - sure, why not.  You'll need to get the residency sorted out first.

2 - there are no "estate agencies/estate agents" here, only property brokers.  You need to be aware that if you get screwed over there is no comeback, no official bodies, no codes of conduct etc etc.  The legal system here is also next to non-existent.  Caveat Emptor must be in your mind all the time..

3 - there are several mountainous areas - Google Maps will show you the nearest supermarkets to wherever you happen to be looking at.  Bear in mind that outside the cities medical care is somewhat rudimentary.

4 - Land/a property with land needs a company if you're a TCN.  They're cheap enough to organise - don't buy an existing one as you'll be liable for its debts, regardless of whether you knew it had any.

5 - I believe that Scotland, Wales, and N Ireland are also out of the EU these days 😎.  Getting a residence visa is more challenging than it was, especially if you aren't a pensioner - but it's still do-able.  At some stage, BG may fall into line with other EU countries, in which case it may well be a LOT tougher.

6 - Yes, it's possible and Yes, you're probably nuts.  I don't know what the figures are like nowadays but the huge majority of Brits I've come across here over the last 20 years have been dreamers/fugitives from reality and are now back in the UK, or living elsewhere.  Most of us who are (still) living here do so because we can't afford to move/live anywhere else or we're just too cantankerous to do so.  Obviously, that doesn't mean that everyone is that particular boat and dreamers are everywhere - traditionally they've been a good source of decent properties at cheap rates when they decide to move on... 😀

EVERY country is going to sh*t these days, and BG most certainly is no exception.  The more you get to know the country and its language, the more you'll realise that there are different kinds and degrees of dung; if you're looking for Shangri-la, you haven't found it yet, I'm afraid.  If you think the UK government is hopeless I'd avoid reading the BG newspapers if I were you!

Thank you for ur reply appreciative of any and all commemts

Interesting and perhaps crazy. We are only just looking as retirees but I would say that you can’t rely on 100% solar and it’s going to cost a lot to set up, as a business I would think you would need a decent diesel generator. Also large septic tank and water shortages to bear in mind. Property/land can be deceptive price wise. Have you looked on all the sites to see if there is anything available as a guide?

Have you checked out similar set ups across the country?

I wish you luck but be cautious. When we lived in France we saw many go down the gites route and come unstuck.

So not gospel at all as we aren’t there yet but observations from the intensive research I have done so far 😂😂

Just an idea really i wanted the stream on land to run a small hydro generator in the wetter cloudier months....

Im also looling around portugal i ideally was going to build a small cabin or do up a property im searching online for properties but didnt know if anyone with more local contacts may know of anywhere land anything 1/2 hectare upward saw something 7 hectares the other day but visiting to look i think is going to be 1st priority  many thanks

@Ben Johnson 2022

I'd be very wary about micro hydro in BG! For one thing, it's not really a thing here but, more important, many streams/small rivers are nonexistent in the summer and autumn. You also need to keep in the forefront of your mind that the local Lightfingered Fraternity will view anything that isn't chained up or nailed down as fair game - it's not at all uncommon for houses in more out of the way spots on the outskirts of villages to get sudden "power cuts" that are eventually traced to the cables being stolen while in use; every so often, you'll even read about some of them being electrocuted while stealing cables supplying railway signals etc. You won't hear much in the way of sympathy for the culprits!

It's not just here, of course: some of my "neighbours" in the Pyrenees (the nearest being several kilometres away) used to have recurring problems with disappearing hydro equipment...

@Ben Johnson 2022

We had a look at Portugal too but were a bit concerned at what the government was tightening up on, although currently just the Algarve. Hope you find something.

@JimJ

Its crazy really i understand that people struggle more and more but as u say if its not nailed down (in what ur saying even if it is it doesnt seem to matter) people will take it such a shame i just want to try make the best out of my situation and just live simply and not just blow the oppertunity...

I shall keep looking into ideas and locations but i do know that i cannot afford to do anything i want in the uk or it will all be gone in 8years or probably alot less

@Ben Johnson 2022

If only it were a question of "people struggling"!

The vast majority (but NOT all) of these folk aren't struggling any more than usual; unfortunately we do have a certain community (not regarded as "real Bulgarians" by the majority of the population) to whom private property, rules and laws are just abstract concepts which have no bearing on them or their way of life. They were, like everyone else, controlled during the days of Communism but since then things have gone to pot, admittedly not helped by the general atmosphere of corruption and malfeasance among those who should be setting an example to the rest of society.

Theft and burglary are topics that have been discussed extensively here, and some people choose to close their eyes to the reality of the situation - presumably because still being alive is proof that they're never going to die - but burglary here is endemic and most locals won't even bother to report it since they know that nothing will happen. We were "lucky", in that some items stolen during a burglary at our village house where recovered when one of the culprits was apprehended; however, no action was taken against him (another cock and bull "bought it down the pub, guv" story). The REAL luck we had was being insured to the hilt via a UK broker, but it's by no means an inexpensive option...😥

@Ben Johnson 2022

I'm very happy in Bulgaria, and I recommend it highly. Usually my posts are fairly encouraging, so I apologize for being such a downer. But, unfortunately, it simply doesn't have an easy residence option for folks who are not yet retired, and don't have 300k euros to invest in property. At your age, with your funds, I doubt it's a good option. It is MUCH easier to go to Spain or Portugal (NLV and D7 respectively) in the EU, or our neighbours outside the EU (Serbia, Turkey, maybe Albania).

Separately, Bulgaria is still the poorest country in the EU, which is a big plus in terms of living and property costs, but a huge disadvantage if you need to make money here (either from working or running a campsite). Remote working (low local costs with high foreign salary) is a completely different proposition.

Leaving those issues aside, I'm gonna say that 90k is not an overly generous budget, pretty much anywhere you go. Just to have a large plot of land (especially in a picturesque and desirable location where we might want to stay with you) with your own livable house will likely be 40-50k, probably more. If that's all you wanted, and you had a pension or remote work, then it's feasible.

But you need to build some cabins/yurts, extra toilets. And there's the cost of power (and water) generation if you go off-grid and want solar panels, batteries, backup generator, borehole, etc. And you need to keep a financial cushion until it all starts generating income. Fairly recently, I built a small cabin on my land, using steel frame + SIPs. Came in at 20k euros. There's some very cheap stuff on AliBaba in terms of yurts and other large tents, and prefab cabins, and I've been meaning to try one. They are certainly worth a good, hard look, but I don't know the real cost when you factor in the extras (shipping,import duties/VAT, necessary upgrades as the sticker price is usually the bare bones option, base/foundation, plumbing/wiring/septic, furnishing, etc.).

My suggestion is to consider putting your inheritance into your property in the UK, where you can keep working. And Devon's lovely, it's not like it's easy to find better places. :-) Or put a bit of it into your camper van and a few months on the road to get away from it all (but without the cost/aggravation of residence permits, property purchase and construction issues).

Good luck, whatever (and wherever) you decide!