Bulgarian Property
Property Services
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12.03.2008
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Source: Vagabond Magazine - www.vaganond-bg.com
ADVICE ONE - SEEING PROPERTY IS BELIEVING
Many real estate agencies offer a service called "purchasing Bulgarian property online". You see photos supposedly providing all the information about a proposed acquisition. Then you tell your real estate agent you want to buy that cute cottage in Elhovo without even viewing it once. Does that seem naive? Probably, but more then 15,000 British house-hunters acquired property online in Bulgaria between 2000 and 2005, lured by vacuous promises boasting of the "potential" of a house. At least 5,000 of these buyers were immediately disillusioned when they actually saw their new residence. The usual scenario is as follows: the property either looks nothing like the "virtual" one - it may even be derelict - or nobody had forewarned you that you were buying in a godforsaken, isolated region without proper communications. Yet, in spite of this, people continue to buy Bulgarian property online, perhaps saving a couple of hundred euros on plane tickets but losing far more on bungled deals.
ADVICE TWO - OWNING THE LIFT IN THE BUILDING
Everything seems fine. You have seen your holiday apartment in Bulgaria and everything, including the location and building quality, seems ideal. Please re-examine your contract! In Bulgaria, when you purchase an apartment or, as they call it, "the real parts" - rooms, corridors, bathrooms, etc - you also pay for "the ideal parts," or "the common parts," of the building -staircases, elevators, etc. Nobody will forewarn you, just as nobody can explain the logic of this system, since if you want to have a basement or a garage with the apartment you must pay more. Hence, when you purchase a 100 sq m, or 1,076 sq ft, apartment the real size of your property is actually 80 sq m, or 861 sq ft, but you have to pay for 20 sq m, or 215 sq ft of the ideal parts. You won't be able to erect a fence around 20 sq m, or 215 sq ft, of the staircase you paid for and claim it's yours - the truth is that they are commonly owned. Your only practical step is to ensure you pay no more than five to 10 percent of the ideal parts out of the total price, because, occasionally, building companies ask buyers for up to 25 percent.
ADVICE THREE - LOOK AT THE MAP
You purchased a nice apartment in, for example, Bansko - one of the most popular ski resorts. You are happy with the price, the quality and the view from your window. Now look at the map-are you sure this is really Bansko? Some real estate agents sell Bulgarian properties in towns and villages near top ski or coastal resorts, presenting them as the actual destinations themselves. This is how many foreigners own apartments in Dobrinishte, instead of Bansko, or in Chepelare - not in Pamporovo! The difference? Many thousands of euros! Prices in regions near large resorts tend to sell for half the price of the resorts themselves.
ADVICE FOUR - TIMING IS EVERYTHING
You have decided to purchase a plot of land in Bulgaria. Your agent has warned you that you cannot own land here unless you register as a local company. This is by no means an unattainable dream - you only need to pay a lawyer around 500 euros for registration and wait until the court processes your request. Yet, at the moment, Bulgaria's real estate market has a very rapid turnover, so the property you wish to buy today may be unavailable tomorrow. Therefore, you must ensure that your plot of choice will still be yours. The problem is that the owner wants to sell it immediately and is unwilling to wait until your court registration is completed. Your agent suggests that you sign a preliminary contract and pay the owner 10 percent of the property's total price - a civilised practice throughout the world. The standard duration of a preliminary contract in Bulgaria is 30 days, exactly the period required for registering a Bulgarian company in court. The time for concluding the deal approaches and - horror! - the court worked slowly this month, your company is still unregistered and you still have no right to purchase land. The owner blames you for losing more reliable clients and keeps the 10 percent you have already paid. Why? The contract states you have not kept your side of the bargain and this is considered fair compensation. An advisable preventative measure is to insist on a preliminary 40-day contract.
ADVICE FIVE - TOO MANY COOKS SPOIL THE BROTH
The privatisation of land after the fall of Communism triggered many inter-family feuds as relatives squabbled about proprietary issues. Hence the current Bulgarian property map contains plots of 1,000 sq m, or 10,764 sq ft, owned by 20 siblings and cousins. If, unfortunately, you wish to buy one of these plots, you or your real estate agent are burdened with trying to convince these 20 people to peacefully sign the contract. Probably at least one of the owners will change his mind at the last moment and refuse to sign. The deal proves impossible; you have wasted your time and your business plan is ruined, notwithstanding the nerve-racking and humiliating fight you have to endure at the notary office. If there is no way to avoid deals requiring signatures from more than three or four people, you should insist that all owners authorise only one person to represent them. For these reasons and many more, you should find an extremely competent real estate agent and thoroughly research the situation yourself. A little spadework may spare you a great deal of agony. And remember the difference between a mirage and reality! The old adage really is true - seeing is believing!
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