Bulgaria price boom?

Newly released figures have shown that house prices in Bulgaria's regional cities jumped almost 25% in 2008 compared to 2007...

This represents an increase of BGN 1,363 per square metre, according to the data compiled by data of the National Statistical Institute.

The uptrend held through October, but prices dropped 4.1% in the third quarter from the previous three months. The data excludes new build houses and luxury apartments, and are based on the prices of sold properties.

Unrealistic figures?

However, according to Strahil Ivanov, owner of real estate agency Yavlena, the statistics are ‘unrealistic', noting that that prices rose in the first quarter and have since then slumped by 10 to 20%.

A survey of Bulgarian properties revealed that last year property transactions were struck at 26% higher prices on average than in the previous year.

The company's operating manager, Polina Stoikova, explained prices were rising by October and the slid 15-20% from the early months of the year as buyers opted for higher-class properties.

Biggest rise in Sofia

According to the NSI, flat prices in Sofia jumped the highest, gaining almost 47.8% last year. In Lovech, Pleven, Plovdiv, Rousse and Yambol prices rose around 30%.

In the third quarter prices dropped in 28 out of the 23 regional cities, most notably in Veliko Tarnovo, Pleven and Targovishte, which saw falls of more than 11%.

Source: http://propertywisebulgaria.com