Real estate investments in Bulgarian capital

Bulgarian capital – Sofia has been rated 17th by attractiveness for real estate investments, according to a ranking of the British newspaper “Daily Telegraph.”

The information was reported Wednesday by the Bulgarian news agency BGNES and the private TV channel bTV.

The publication lists as advantage for the Bulgarian capital the rent market as lucrative and profitable for investors.

Disadvantages include low profits, high expenses for transactions, moderate tax on rent income, corruption and crime.

Bulgarian Sofia is ahead in the ranking of Prague, Helsinki and even Paris, which is 20th.

However, Brussels is number one. Vienna, Ljubljana, Bratislava, Bucharest, Warsaw, Chisinau, Riga, Rome, Berlin, Tallinn, Zagreb, Istanbul, Skopje and Budapest are all rated higher than Sofia while the Macedonian capital is even second by attractiveness for investors. The Bulgarian capital is actually last among all Balkan ones.

The main sectors of Bulgarian economy

Before the economic crisis, construction was the main sector of Bulgarian economy. A large number of Brits invested in Bulgarian real estate, but when the crisis dimmed their hopes for profits, they started selling and leaving the country. The Brits were replaced by Russians, who buy property used mostly for vacation and secondly – as permanent residence.

Number of Russians with Bulgarian Visa Up 32% in 2011

In 2011, Bulgarian Consular Offices in the Russian Federation had issued 32% more visas, compared to 2010.

The total number of visas in 2011 is 390 882.

The information was reported Wednesday by the press center of the Bulgarian Foreign Affairs Ministry.

The Consular Office in Sankt Petersburg registers a 13% increase in the number of Bulgarian visas, the one in Moscow – 36%.

The number if individual applicants and respectively visas is up 64%.

The increase is attributed to travels to Bulgaria of Russian citizens, who had purchased vacation and residential properties, along with members of their families and friends accompanying them.

In the last 3-4 years, over 200 000 Russians have purchased real estate in Bulgaria,

According to latest estimates these properties are valued at over  1.5 Billion Bulgarian Levs.