Buying property in Bulgaria

Dear Robbie,

Allow me to recommend to decide the following questions:
- what property you are looking for
- where - in a resort /ski or sea/, village or town.
- what is your bugdet

After that you can turn to real estate agent to help you find the property.
Be careful to search for a professional agent who is recommended to you.
It is better to inspect the property personally before you sign any preliminary agreement or deed.
Any documents to be signed, including with the agent, only after you read them carefully and your lawyer review them.

hassan46 wrote:

Thanks mate. We have some viewing appointments let us see what happens. What is the weather like in winter in Yambol?  Please note down my number in Bulgaria 0876443275.

Regards

Hassan

Hi again Hassan i have sent you a PM please check there

Hi Robbi
All depends on you If you like warmer climate got to south of Bulgaria and colder to the north but, Be a ware of gypsies around villages around although they are not that much of problems. Find English speaking lawyer and if you need I can introduce mine to you too.

Regards

Hassan

2 High fives
I have done my homework B4 coming and have English speaking lawyer who has office in GB. Will not sign any papers before my layer view and approve. Our budget is around EU 100,000 and around south black sea area which is warmer in winter.

Best Wishes

Hassan

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Hi can anybody advise me my friend is selling a 1 bedroom apt at panorama grand resort st vlas bulgaria...he wants 20k sterling for it.at the moment its been rented out by fortnoks for 11 yrs netting approc 1k pcm.
Any warnings i need etc ?
Im looking for it to be a hol home and to go up in value then sell in 10 yrs .
Please any advice as im not sure
Regards

Sorry thats 1k per Year profit!

Its easy to own as a foreigner.  Just be sure to get a reputable lawyer to check for encumbrances as debt travels with the property.  Check for encumbrances before signing preliminary purchase agreement and just before signing final contract in front of notary.  Maybe use escrow notary or lawyer's escrow account (cheaper and less complicated than bank) to hold funds on account until property sale clears on national property register.  Restitution, with land especially, is a key issue to check up on to avoid claims from relatives.  Watch out for property tax it can be a bone of contention try to negotiate that seller pays, or at worst go 50/50 on this to facilitate sale.  Notary fees should be shared too.  Be careful with some lawyers as they can lack business or commercial sense and are more interested in winning spurious arguments and point scoring and can cause deals to fall through.  For agency fees expect to pay between 2.5&-3.5%.  Legal fees can be from a minimum of say 600 Euros for conveyancing upto the equivalent of one m2 of the property value.  In gated, especially tourist complexes, be careful that you check what the service charges are, they can be abusive with onerous contracts as a precondition of sale.  In negotiations do not be afraid to make a timed offer i.e. x,000 Euros 24 hours to decide or you walk. When you buy check who is going to register the transfer of ownership with the Municipality for property and garbage tax (2 months window) and BULSTAT etc... this often falls between two stools accountant or lawyer and is left hanging.

Hi,
I visited Bulgaria many times as tourist and I would like to buy a flat in Sofia. Question. can it buy a flat in Bulgaria as Ecuadorian citizen? If yes what are the rules and/or in which goverment entity I can get advise?
Thanks in advance.

jmunoz61 wrote:

Hi,
I visited Bulgaria many times as tourist and I would like to buy a flat in Sofia. Question. can it buy a flat in Bulgaria as Ecuadorian citizen? If yes what are the rules and/or in which goverment entity I can get advise?
Thanks in advance.

Hello

There is a law regulating the acquisition and ownership of property in Bulgaria including foreigners and foreign entities. It is uploaded in the Ministry of the Regional Development. If you want more detailed information you can send us a private message. We are fluent in Spanish.

You just need to open a company to buy a house, had people coming from non EU countries and that's what they were asked to do.

is it possible for Australians to buy property in Bulgaria and is it just the same rules as for uk residents or are there other restrictions. any help appreciated
steve

Hi all I have just found out that from May 2014 EU nationals cant buy land,forrest or property on the edge of a village unless it is brought buy a company that is at least 5 years old or if you have been in Bulgaria for 5 or more years I would think that's on your permit .
My first thought is do the Bulgarian government want to close down there smaller villages?
Hope this helps

Where did you learn this because it is not correct. We are EU citizens and we purchased a house and land last year near Burgas with no problem. We don't have a company by the way.

Hi the law came into force in May 2014 no property on the edge of a village can be brought in your own name ONLY BY A COMPANY THAT YOU CAN OWN BUT HAS TO BE AT LEAST 5 YEARS OLD ,THATS THE COMPANY.
that also applies to farm land and forrest I got the information from an agent and far play to them this will hurt there business .
I don't know when you brought your property was it before May or after?
Oh the agent is Bulgarian property experts based in the Popovo area

This applies to property on the EDGE of a village only property in the village is still possible in your own name as an EU citizen

so for eu residents you don't need to form a company anymore, but for non eu residents you still do to be able to buy the land, is this correct?
Steve

As an Australian to buy real estate in any form you need to have  Bulgarian company that you own this is how you get around the problem of buying as for your rights to live there I have no idea sorry hope this helps good luck .

vectis wrote:

This applies to property on the EDGE of a village only property in the village is still possible in your own name as an EU citizen

Sorry but as long as the land is regulated you can,
your agent is not a lawyer or a notary, we just sold a house with 5000 sqm regulated land at the end of the village and my lawyer who helps me to sell our houses knows better the law than any agent.
Sihemt

I hope you are right but there is nothing wrong for future buyers to ask that question even if its just for piece of mind, you can buy and sell anything if there is a buyer and seller but that does not make it legal.

It's legal if you go through a lawyer and a notary i do this for over 10 years

Hi
Last July we purchased our property in Burgas and had no problems at at all. Whether you got an outdated information or the person who gave you the information was in wrong. As the other quoted we are in EU now.

Hi Steve ,
Sure you can buy a property in Bulgaria .
                                                                 Axinia

Again I hope this is wrong but why would 2 agents advertise this? It can only hurt them .The main reason im trying to get this across to people is to make them think ,ask if its incorrect great .
As for being in the EU people seem to think this gives you the freedom to do what you want when ever you want,im British but if I go to Bulgaria I have to leave after 90 days yes I can apply for a permit but what if I don't want to? Im from the EU makes no difference get a permit or get out.

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Hi
Dear, friend this is the law in this country and although they are member of EU but, they also are ex-communist minded and you can not change their rules and laws whether we like  or dislike.We all have followed their rules and have 5 years residency permits. Hope this explains

Best Regards.

Hi I've bought a plot of land in byala around 8 years ago from bgp properties. In which I had to open a company to buy the plot. And have been paying them each year taxes!  Now I have read a fair bit which says people who buy in Bulgaria dont need to own a company to buy! Is this correct. If so do I still need to have an active company and pay taxes each year.

Thank you so much helpful information.

Hi all, does anyone have any recommendations for agencies? Specifically, has anyone bought through Homes Direct Bulgaria? How was your experience? Thanks!

Hi,,,Try "Ideal Homes",,they are Very Honest in Buying & Reliable,,& Help from start to finish,,,awesome Agency

Hi The short answer is yes.....as an EU citizen you can own 1 residential property persanally, any more legally should be in the name or owned by a Bulgarian registered company...OOD, as a none Bulgarian you can not own agricultural land / property this again must be owned by a company, which you can own but you must have accounts presented each year.

But buying in Bulgaria has its pitfalls ensure you use a good Notary and that all documents are in place and debts on the property are paid before you sign anything...

Tay

Hi Olif

I agree with Eddie.. Ideal homes in Veliko Tărnovo are very very good..
The owner Veselin is very helpful in all aspects of moving to BG and honest and reliable.
We have been here a year now and I can still call him if I have issues with something and he sorts it out for me without expecting anything in return.
Good Luck

Paul

Hello
Are you still offering advice on buying in Bulgaria ?

Thanks
Hayley

Hi, any tips of which agents to avoid in Veliko Tarnovo?  Seen a property we like owned by an English couple for 7 years.

Is it in the centre itself?

Hello. I'm looking to buy a property as soon as possible in the vt area, could you give me any advice on who to contact regarding this as am worried about being ripped off, many thanks.

HI, if you scroll back over previous posts, you will see that Ideal Homes operate in that area, and as previously mentioned, Ves the owner is top notch!

We have just returned from VT to view property and found that Stara Planina are very helpful and I think I would trust them any day over Yantra Homes who are very friendly but also pushy and if you are not careful they get you to sign a Viewing Contract!  They also will rush you into signing a preliminary contract which means also paying their 3% commission, 10% deposit and that is the end of their interest in the sale.  Too late to deal with Stara who also had the property on their books, but they recommended a lady lawyer who speaks good English who will make sure everything is in order before we sign anything.  The owners of some properties who bought their house by forming a company and put a lower purchase price on the title deeds to save capital gains tax also pushed to do the same on their property sale - lower price on deeds and make up the difference with an assets sale - and the agents will tell you this is legal but beware as if you are found out their will be serious consequences and also if you sell the property you will have to pay higher capital gains tax!

Hi, do you have to become a resident if I was to buy a house?
Is it expensive to hire a English speaking lawyer to do all work when buying a house etc
Thanks
Phil

Hi Phil we brought in june this year. We used a Bulgarian company and they were excellent, cheap and sorted out our legal stuff which was also translated into English so we understood everything. The company have assisted us throughout and continue to do so.