Russians are the main buyers of beach properties

About 95% of real estate deals on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast in the second quarter of the year are with Russians according to the data of the real estate agency BULGARIAN PROPERTIES. The company’s Chief Operations Manager Polina Stoykova said to Dnevnik newspaper that the Russian speaking buyers are the main players on the seaside holiday home market.

Although the demand is high, they prefer apartments at lower prices - between 20,000 Euro and 40,000 Euro. Polina Stoykova explained that the buyers are looking mainly for apartments at prices between 25,000 Euro and 50,000 Euro, while the markets in Varna and Burgas fall behind in terms of dynamics to the market in Sofia.

"Prices of properties in Varna remain high - often much higher than those in Sofia. Still there is a gap between the supply and the demand in terms of price expectations, but the trend is for them to converge and the difference between offer and bid prices to melt, "she said. Currently, beach property prices are the lowest for the past three years. The greatest interest is towards Sunny Beach, where the supply is the greatest, and the prices are between 400 Euro and 850 Euro per sq.m. depending on the property type and its location. The company reported less interest in the resorts along the northern Black Sea coast as well as in the southern part of Burgas, where prices are higher – over than 800 euro per sq. m. "This comes out of the budget of the current buyers," said Stoykova.

The demand for apartments in unfinished buildings along the whole Black sea coast is extremely low because of the risks such a purchase can bring. Another reason is the huge supply in the completed buildings. "People treasure the time they would spend on repairing the property and the money they have to invest additionally and they are more inclined to buy finished homes," explained Ms Stoykova.

Prices in Varna
The data from several real estate agencies show that the prices per square meter vary. BULGARIAN PROPERTIES reported a very slight increase in comparison to the last year. In 2011 the prices have reached 1,009 Euro per sq. m. according to the company data. And upon the deal the bid price of one-bedroom apartment can fall by about 20,000 Euros. The average rent price for one-bedroom apartment is 430 Euro in Varna, reported from BULGARIAN PROPERTIES.

In Burgas the rent is cheaper
For the past 12 months selling prices of homes in the city of Varna fell by 10.06%, this being lowest for the last 5-6 years, according to the analysis of the real estate company Foros. Experts said that the largest decrease is reported in prefabricated building (16.34 %), followed by old monolithic construction (12.24%) and new building (8.87%). The average rental price in Burgas decreased by 6.67 %, while the decline is largest for unfurnished homes - more than 12%.

In Burgas rental prices are lower than in Varna, said Polina Stoykova from BULGARIAN PROPERTIES, an average of 320 Euro per month, and demand is mainly focused on the cheapest offers for long-term rental by Bulgarians who move to work or study in the city. Holiday apartments are rented mainly on a hotel basis or for the whole season. Rental prices are determined mostly per night - about 50-60 Euro for a one-bedroom apartment.

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