http://residential.bg/news.php Colliers Residential bg Colliers International Property Consultants, Inc. Mon, 22 Mar 2010 10:49:50 +0200 http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=34 news http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=33 news http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=28 http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=27 http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=26 http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=24 news http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=23 news http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=22 n http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=21 Monitor The supply of two bedroom apartments in Sofia for under euro;45 000 is booming Currently, there are over 1000 unfinished apartments for sale with an area of minimum 60 sq. m. The price for those is not higher than 45 000EUR, the website imot.bg shows. During the last twelve months, the two beds have lost more than 17% of their value. The studio apartments have lost 27,4% of their value. Most offer for cheap properties are located in ldquo;Lyulin rdquo;, statistics shows. There are offers for 160 studios and 200 one bedroom apartments. In all of the five parts of ldquo;Mladost rdquo; there are 30 studios for sale and 150 one bedroom apartments. In ldquo;Drujba rdquo; and ldquo;Nadajeda rdquo; the numbers are almost the same. The crisis continues to push prices downwards. Usually, the developers who run out of cash and cannot finish their buildings are the ones willing to cut down their prices the most. http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=20 Investor- Imoti Greek company freezes a large residential project close to Sofia (abbreviated) The Greek company Michaniki decided to postpone the start of its residential project ldquo;Rodopolis rdquo; in German, a small village by Sofia. The company has bought land of 95 000 m2 and has planned to develop a residential project with a combination of row houses, single houses and apartments. Michaniki is listed on the Athens stock exchange, operates in the area of construction, real estate and infrastructure in Greece, Bulgaria, Russia, Ukraine, Egypt and others. In Bulgaria the company is present since 1995. Michaniki is currently developing projects in Greece and CEE for a total value of 1,08 bln EUR. * * * Klasa Sofia start a campaign against the chaotic construction of buildings (abbreviated) A massive campaign against the chaotic construction of buildings begins in Sofia, the general architect of Sofia Petar Dikov said for bTV. The sanctions that the Municipality of Sofia will be related to the changes of the Law on Territory Planning for all of the quarters in the city, Klasa informs. Currently Petar Dikov has no right to cancel a building permit if the architect from the administrative area has illegally authorized it. The general architect had such a case in his practice and therefore, believes the law should change. He also claims that the rehabilitation of main streets and the improvement of the infrastructure should as transparent and public as possible. In the Law on Territory Planning changes should also be made on issues such as: public and private ownership of land, the facades of buildings, and the private ownership of green parts in the residential quarters. * * * Monitor Around 3000 new built apartments are waiting for buyers (abbreviated) The southern parts of Sofia are a leader on the market for single offers of apartments in construction with a reasonable living area. According to imot.bg there are 49 offers for studio flats in construction of around 35 m2. The offers for two bedroom apartments of 70m2 are many more- 560. There are 74 offers for three bedroom apartments and 50 offers for large apartments. What buyers seek the most is a good size one bedroom apartment of around 55m2. There are 567 offers for this type of apartments and they cost between 464EUR and 2118EUR. These are only offers for apartments in construction. * * *
Telegraf Studentski Grrad is more expensive than Lozenetz (abbreviated) The big demand made the rents in Studetski Grad jump to level that were normal only for the central parts of Sofia. Deals are usually completed for 350EUR for partially furnished one bedroom apartments. As a comparison- such a property could be rented in prestigious neighborhood such as Lozenetz or even across NDK for 250-260EUR and in comes fully furnished. Usually the offered price is much above the real price for which the clients agree to rent the apartment. For instance, in Studentski grad there are offers for 450EUR for a furnished apartment. A non-furnished apartment across Sheraton could be rented for 800EUR. In Musagentiza, Darvenitza, Dianabad, Madost 1 and 2, because of their proximity to the main universities prices start form 250-350EUR. http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=19 Banker 100 000 properties are ldquo;pending rdquo; on the market in Sofia (abbreviated) During the last few years, while the construction was growing rapidly, there was a notion that 30% of every newly built residential building were bought with the intention to resell the property at a higher price or were kept by the investor with the same purpose. Today however, this notion becomes a real factor influencing the real estate market. If those properties are released on the marked, there would be a tsunami effect. An unofficial research shows that there are over 80 000 apartments in Sofia with electricity bills below 1 lev per month. Further 20 000 apartments accumulate electricity bills between 1 and 5 levs. This means that those apartments consume such a low level of energy enough only to power the security systems and are practically unused. Those 100 000 unused apartments in question are a real bomb waiting to explode. Usually, such investment apartments were purchased for 500-700EUR per m2 while they were still in construction. If today they are put on the market for 800EUR, which is the current average price, investors would still make a profit. However, the large volume of new offers would surely change the current market situation.
The new government is considering a taxation program, which would require a higher tax to be paid for every additional property owned by a person or a company, apart from the main family/company property. This would eventually kill the investment property market. * * * Sega Prices of residential properties reach their cost of construction (abbreviated) The prices of the residential properties are now almost even to the construction cost of the property, shows research conducted by MKB Unionbank. The average price for a two bedroom apartment in Bulgaria is now 487EUR per m2. For the purchase of such a property today, 30 000EUR would be enough. A research by ldquo;Address rdquo; shows that 32% of the sellers in Bulgaria are in a desperate situation, ready to sell at any price. 17% of them could not pay off their mortgage. Before taking a mortgage one should carefully calculate the monthly installments. The average interest in June was 10,39%. Further 4-5% over the loan should be planned for notary fees as well. Even though prices are falling down, prices in Sofia remain the highest. In July, the average price for a deal was 710EUR per m2. * * * Dnevnik The end the cash purchases for a property has come (abbreviated) A unique public institution will manage and control the sums from all real estate deals in order to bring to light those deals and prevent the money launder in this sector. The institution will be created with the agreement of the Ministry of Justice and the Notary Chamber. This would be an institution and not a bank, Dimitar Tanev the chair of the Notary chamber said. He also explained that this is the practice in France and the model has been copied from there. With this scheme the seller get his money slower, but on the other hand transparency and security is assured for all of sides in the deal. Tanev describes the procedure as follows: the money for the deal is deposited in the institution for 2-3 weeks, before the buyer could withdraw it. During that time the origin of the money is checked and all of the fees and taxes are deducted. Tanev believes that this is the only way to prevent money laundry and tax fraud. http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=18 Pari Daily Luxury properties maintain their prices despite the crisis Foreign buyers are still not returning on the market for luxury properties as the foreign media claims. According to Nikola Stoyanov,managing director of ldquo;Lux Properties rdquo;. Sellers are not willing to cut down their prices because they believe their investment and the exclusivity of the location do match the asking prices. Rarely, prices could go down with 10-15%. What is more, the supply of truly luxury properties is not that high and there is no saturation in this segment of the market. A penthouse of 192 m2 in a new residential building in Boyana district, Sofia is sold for 351 000EUR. In Varna, a luxury property of 240 m2 in ldquo;Morska Gradina rdquo; costs 800 000EUR, as the ldquo;Lux Properties rdquo; website indicates. Yet, buyers are still not coming back on the market as there are not enough indicators that the crisis will over soon. * * * http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=17 Dnevnik Daily Off-plan property sales have stopped (abbreviated) The widely popular for last two years off-plan property sales have now disappeared from the market. The main reason is that banks would only finance the purchase of a built-up apartment. The buyers themselves are avoiding such purchases because of the risk that the building could not be finished. Yet, prices are still not falling drastically, brokers claim. Research shows that significant fall in residential prices mark only the investors whose developments have been financed by banks and now have trouble serving those loans. Luxury properties however, still keep their premium prices and sellers seldom make discounts, even though they rarely make a sell. The world crisis would be a filter for the real estate market and only the strong and reputable players would survive. Any occasional developer would eventually disappear.
* * * NEWS Daily 58% decrease in the number of sales in Sofia The number of completed deals fell with 42% for the whole country and with 58% for the Sofia region during the first 6 months of 2009 in comparison to the same period last year. Experts from ldquo;Raiffeisen Properties rdquo; have analyzed the data collected from NSNI, real estate companies and developers. The market now could be compared to the real estate market in 2005. According to Raiffeisen, the buyers in all segments are now on a stand by position. Active are only the risk players willing to diversify their investment portfolio with lucrative properties at lower prices. Some activity demonstrate also the cash rich buyers whose purchase of a property has been planned. They now see the perfect time for a profitable deal. The lower number of property sales is also an indicator that buyers are still expecting the prices to continue to fall. Apart from the planned expansion of the global retailers, not a single sale for the development of a big project has been completed. The average time for site visits and negotiations has increased from 20 days to 60 days. Now a deal could not be closed unless significant discount is made. * * *
Trud Daily The relationship rent: property price indicates another decrease The price of the residential properties could fall even more is the relationship between the rent of an apartment and its price is considered. On average 209 monthly rents were needed to pay off a two bedroom apartment in ldquo;Mladost rdquo; during the first half of 2009. The rent of the property was between 320EUR and 380EUR and the market value around 75 000EUR. The analysis has been done by the mortgage firm ldquo;Kreditex rdquo;. For comparison, during the second half of last year, when the prices were still inflated, the same property in ldquo;Mladost rdquo; could be paid off with 237 rents. From ldquo;Kreditex rdquo; have concluded that is the property costs more that 200 rents, than it is overpriced. In 2002-2203 for example, before the prices went up, an apartment could be paid off with 140-160 rents. The good news for investors is that the profitability of the residential properties is going up. The reason is that prices are falling quickly. * * * Trud Daily Prices drastically decreased for only 2-3 residential units in a building Developers in distress are drastically decreasing the prices of only a couple of units in their residential developments. The purpose is to quickly find cash for the ongoing payments of the construction process or to pay off a bank loan. Since the beginning of 2009 in Sofia and Varna there are a few deals for off plan properties for the price of 300-350EUR per sq. m. This means that developers are selling under the cost of the property. With such a deal the buyer takes the risk of seeing the building not being finished if the developer bankrupts. Another trick that developers use is to announce a lower price for a package deal- if the buyer takes several apartments.
http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=16 Colliers International Colliers International has just published the worldwide leasing guidelines The guidelines provide a comprehensive review of real estate practices from around the globe. The leasing guidelines are published every year, and cover more than 50 countries. New countries in this year rsquo;s edition include Croatia, Montenegro, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam. The guidelines give clear insight into current market conditions with regard to lease lengths, legal aspects, renewals and extensions, incentives, tenant improvements, key money and other essential aspects of leasing contracts. The worldwide leasing guidelines show that the most common lease length is 3-5 years. In Bulgaria it is five years, though some leases are only three and few ten years. The latter is mostly seen in shopping malls. In United Kingdom and Ireland the lease length can reach 25 years, but sometimes the leases are shorter. In most countries the rent is quoted per month or year, while in China it can actually be quoted per day. Here, the most common lease term in only two years. There is significant variety in the conditions for lease renewals or extensions. In Bulgaria, the conditions are typically outlined in the contract, potentially with ldquo;silent rdquo; extensions. In Italy, the tenant is automatically granted 6 years extension on the original terms, while in Montenegro it requires renegotiations. Please click on the links below for a detailed view of Colliers worldwide leasing guidelines: Colliers Worldwide Leasing Guidelines Full Colliers Worldwide Leasing Guidelines Overview * * *
Dnevnik Daily
More owners are trying to sell their home alone
(abbreviated)
During the last few months brokers note that some owners are frantically trying to sell their homes. This is due to the fact that some are threatened to lose their homes because they are no longer able to pay off their debt to the banks. What owners prefer is to sell their properties for a small profit than to see their home being confiscated by the bank.
After owners have tried to renegotiate their mortgages or failed to get a second mortgage on their homes the only option is to sell their properties. Still, this type of property sale is still not widely popular, brokers comment.
* * *
http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=15 Colliers International
Sofia- the thirteenth most expensive capital in Europe in terms of parking
Sofia takes the thirteenth place among European capitals in terms of monthly parking prices, suggests Colliers global parking rate survey, dated June 2009, that tracks 140 downtown parking districts from around the globe. The intent of this survey is to provide corporate real estate executives with the relative cost of parking, both on a daily and monthly basis. Sofia stays ahead of Spain and Germany and is positioned right after Prague, Athens and Budapest in the survey.
The monthly parking rate in downtown Sofia (excluding the ldquo;Blue Parking Zone rdquo;) varies from 100 to 200 euro, while the daily rate starts from 8 euro and reaches 12 euro for the whole working day. Leading the list of most expensive cities to park a car is London; both The City (first place at 1 020 euro) and West End (at 956 euro). In third spot is Amsterdam with 805 euro. The cheapest city to park in this year rsquo;s survey is Chennai at 0.96 euro for the day. * * * Sega Daily
Prices for residential properties have landed
(abbreviated)
The lack of completed deals has forced the seller to cut down their prices drastically. Property portals such as www.imot.bg, note that property prices have fallen with 30%. In reality, the real value of the completed deal is much lower.
One bedroom apartments have fallen with more than 40%. In ldquo;Strelbishte rdquo; for example, the price of an apartment has fallen to 931 euro; per m sup2; from 1532 euro; per m sup2; in June 2008. In ldquo;Liulin rdquo; and ldquo;Mladost rdquo; the drop is around 35-37%.
The two bedrooms apartments in ldquo;Obelya rdquo; are traded for 590 euro; per m sup2; on average, a 35% from last year when prices were 907 euro; per m sup2;.
The crisis has affected the so called prestigious areas, as well. In ldquo;Ivan Vazov rdquo; for example the drop is of 34%. Last year the price per m sup2; was 1829 euro;, now an apartment in the area could be bought for 1220 euro; per m sup2;.
* * *
Politika Daily
Buyers become active this fall
(abbreviated)
The consultancy company Credit Center anticipates that this fall the buyers will be stimulated to purchase apartments by the balling prices of the properties. After all, the volume of bank loans will still be significantly lower than the peak in 2006-2007 and the first half of 2008. It is expected that the interest rates will remain around the current levels. Some of the bank institutions however, will offer more competitive rates in order to gain market share.
Atanas Garov, managing director of Colliers international, Bulgaria predicts a still summer for the property market. He also claims that during the last few months, indicators about the balance between supply and demand have occurred.
In the second half of the year Garov believes that first residential property deals will be done by the so called ldquo;loyal clients rdquo; of the banks or client who have proved to be strict with their payments. Loyal clients will have a straight forward access to finance and thus, the advantage of the buyer.
By mid 2008, bank usually financed between 80-90% of the property purchase. Nowadays, the tendency is to release only 40-60% of the amount needed for the deal. By lending less, the banks are minimizing their risk if the clients can no longer pay off their installments.
In 2007, the loans with periods of 35 years were popular. In 2008 clients realized that a period of 25 years was more realistic. In 2009, clients usually borrow from banks for a period of 10to 15 years. The reason for that is that clients have realized the longer the period of repayment, the more expensive the loan becomes.
Still, the profile of the average borrower is a young professional between 25-35 years old with a monthly income of 500-1000leva.

http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=14 Index Imoti Close to the bottom? (abbreviated) The fall of the residential prices during the last few months, the excitement of buyers and banks, led to the mutual agreement that the bottom of the prices is near. Brokers and developers agreed that if the fall continues, that will be due to the low quality of the properties. After all, the economy has shrunk with 3.5% for the first trimester, the unemployment is slowly growing and the monthly income is still unstable. That indicated that the prices of the residential properties will be down for another year or so. Real estate entrepreneurs have already reduced their offer prices with 10-20%. Yet, there is no indication that the discounts will go any further. Colliers International has detected a 6% average decrease of the residential prices for the last six months. * * * Klasa Residential Properties in Sofia have fallen under 1000EUR per m2 (abbreviated) The average prices for the residential properties in Sofia have fallen under the psychological limit of 1000EUR per m2 according to www.imoti.net. Since October, the web portal has reported a total of 100EUR decrease in prices. There are variations however, depending on the area. For instance, highest prices are noted in Lozenetz- 1632EUR per m2 and Yavorov- 1791EUR/m2. The cheapest offers for the moment can be found in Iliyantsi- 502 EUR/m2 and Drujba 492 EUR/m2. Colliers International comments that the fall of the residential prices has a balancing effect on the prices and notes that only residential projects with stable financing, solid infrastructure and good quality will keep the level of their offer prices. * * * http://imoti.investor.bg/?cat=113 amp;id=82117 Balance between supply and demand is expected by the end of the year. (abbreviated) The balance between supply and demand of residential properties is expected to be achieved by the end of 2009. It is anticipated that because of the slowdown of development of new residential projects, the amount of free new apartments will decrease. It is expected as well, that the prices and rental levels of properties will be stabilized by the end of the year. Demand The demand for residential properties in the first half of 2009 is significantly smaller than in previous years. Usually, small apartments of 60-70m2 are most demanded. Because of the high supply of various properties, the average number of site visits and the time taken to make the purchase has significantly increased. Rents In the first half of the year the supply of rental properties continued to grow. The central part of Sofia, Lozenetz, Manastirski Livadi and Studentski Grad offer the highest number of properties to rent. This is due to the fact that many owners have previously bought an apartment for investment purposes and are now putting it on the market. Many are willing to sell but are waiting for better prices while renting out their properties. However, monthly rental prices are also falling. * * * Monitor Daily The two beds in the Eastern parts of Sofia are cheaper than in summer 2007. (abbreviated) The website imoti.net made this conclusion based on the fact that the prices of the old panel apartments depend on the new-built, which is also decreasing in prices. The cheapest offers are for apartments in Mladost 1A for prices of 757-1154 EUR per m2. In Mladost 3 the prices are 765-1131 EUR per m2. These levels are similar to the residential prices in summer 2007. Similar results are found in Drujba as well. A two bedroom apartment in Drujba 1, now varies between 32 000 ndash; 65 000 EUR per m2. Offers in Drujba ndash; 2 for two beds start from 51 000 up to 75 000 EUR per m2. * * * Monitor Daily Residential properties in construction in central Sofia- 15% downfall (abbreviated) The website imot.bg points out that the properties in construction in Sofia have decreased with an average of 15%. Since September last year customers are less likely to purchase an unfinished apartment since the risk is higher. The main reason for the decreasing demand for such type of properties is the reluctance of the banks to fund the deal. Developers on the other hand, would not risk their budged putting it in unfinished buildings. As a result, in central Sofia the offers for unfinished residential properties are 50% less than last September. http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=12 Residential Park Sofia received a Permission To Use Residential Park Sofia received Permission To Use for all of the buildings in neighborhoods 11, 13 and 13. Residential Park Sofia is the first project in Bulgaria to be planned as a self-sustained residential complex. Located on the base of Vitosha Mountain, south of the Circle road, Residential Park Sofia has been developed on 260 000 m2 of land. Right across the Circle road is Business Park Sofia, which makes the residential complex strategically placed and providing a unique combination of a private home close to work. When finished, Residential Park Sofia will consist of 600 residential units in total- single and row houses, apartments, a commercial zone, sport facilities and zones for relaxation and entertainment. A swimming pool, tennis court, basketball and volleyball fields, a kinder garden, playgrounds and parking spaces for guests have also been planned. The commercial zone at the beginning of the residential complex will contain a supermarket, a restaurant, a coffee shop, dry cleaning, a pharmacy, beauty salon and other services. With its endless parks and green areas, Residential Park Sofia fits entirely into the natural environment of Vitosha Mountain. * * * *
Standard Daily
Monthly rental levels are decreasing
(abbreviated) The monthly rents in Sofia are decreasing. 10% for the first trimester of 2009 was the decline in rental levels. The average rental prices for a home are currently 200-300EUR per month. The reason is that the market is saturated. There are no buyers for a huge part of the apartments on the market. Many of the owners however, are not willing to cut down their prices and prefer to rent out the units. . The decline of the monthly rents is indicating that the prices of the residential units have still not reached the bottom. It is currently much more feasible to pay 200-300EUR monthly for a rent than to pay 1000EUR for a mortgage, brokers agree. The most attractive clients nowadays are the cash buyers. However, they realize the power of the cash buyer and prefer to go after bargain deals. What they are looking for are 1 or 3 bedroom apartments in the Southern parts of Sofia for 1000-1200EUR per m2. * * * *
Trud Daily
Brokers say: The only thing the buyer wants to know is the price The buyers are not used to ask about the ldquo;energy passport rdquo; of a property when signing the contract. The price and not the quality and characteristics of the property is what interests the buyers.
Last year what a priority was the location. In particular, most wanted were locations where the prices were most likely to increase.
Once again clients are fixing their eyes on the price, looking for a bargain, consultants claim.
Investors developing a new building agree that buyers do not require an ldquo;energy passport rdquo;. ldquo;it is important to popularize the law For Energy Efficiency. That is one of the ways to gain the trust of the clients rdquo; comments Lachezar Donchev, chairman of the National Real Property Association. * * * * ldquo;24 Hours rdquo; Daily
Owners in distress can sell their properties for 60% of the price
(abbreviated) Companies buying out the properties of owners in distress pay 40% less than the original price. As ldquo;24 Hours rdquo; has written before, under the conditions of a crisis a new business developed. In essence that means the purchase of a residential property at a cheaper price with the purpose of reselling it on a later stage. Specialists say that usually the planned profit is of at least 20% after the costs of property management and brokerage services are covered. Speculators are looking for properties under their real price in key locations such as the central part of big cities and other prestigious parts. Another thing they consider is the quality of the construction and the materials used. People who are willing to sell their properties for an under market value are usually in distress, or people who can no more pay the mortgage or who have bought one on an early stage of development. * * * *
ldquo;24 Hours rdquo; Daily
Rosen Plevneliev, manager of ldquo;Lindner Immobilen Management Bulgaria rdquo;: Quality properties will not fall under 700EUR per m2
(abbreviated) -Mr. Plevneliev, is there an improvement of the real estate market situation? Consultants say the number completed deals last during the past few weeks is growing.
- I wish to believe in that statement but lately there have been many elements of positive thinking. Still, there are many indicators for change. In general when the weather becomes hot and sunny, Bulgarians change their attitude and bring back their positive mood. However, the big question is what happens after that? - Does this mean that September will mark the bottom of the prices?
- Prices are falling quickly. Even though, the decline is 12% only, still far of the 20% limit. We have still not reached the bottom. - Where is the bottom than?
- Selling prices can not fall under 800EUR per m2. The costs of building a development with the expenses for construction, management and infrastructure is 700EUR minimum. The profit of the developer is not as high as buyers think. - Is it really now the moment to make a purchase?
- Bulgarians tend to believe in conspiracy theories. It is hard for many to even consider the fact that is this situation, the chance to buy a property using alternative and innovative financial schemes. The occasional ldquo;developers rdquo; disappeared and only the ones with a proven track record and long-term plans survived. The crisis was the instrument for bringing back the sustainable development and the realistic prices.

http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=10 Pari Daily An Increase of 11% for new homes in 2008
(abbreviated) The five year cycle of residential property growth has reached its end in 2008 by achieving an increase of 10,9% according to the National Statistical Institute. Most of the new residential buildings were developed in Varna and Bourgas and a significantly smaller part in Sofia. The total built-up area of the residential properties has reached 1,635 mil m sup2;- with an increase of 7,5% in comparison to 2007. Still, the usable area of the apartments, has decreased with 2,4m sup2; to an average of 78,2 m sup2;. The growth of the new homes however, is not expected to continue throughout the next few years anticipate property specialists. Ivan Boykov, executive director of the Bulgarian Construction Chamber claims that the market is saturated and the developers are freezing their projects. As a result, only few new residential buildings will be completed and put on the market. He anticipates a decline of 30-40% for the completed new homes. Boykov also notes that the issued building permits in 2008 are 3 times less the number of permits issued in 2007. He does not expect any new residential buildings to be developed in the next 4-5 years.
* * * BIG BG - News Citizens of Sofia not willing to invest in a top floor apartment
(abbreviated) Vassil Nanchev One of the cheapest types of homes in Bulgaria is the so called ldquo;EPK rdquo; studio/one bed apartment on a high floor. The ldquo;EPK rdquo; abbreviation represents a type of construction based on monolithic in-situ cast concrete structures. The basic drawback of such buildings is that the walls lack sound and heat isolation. ldquo;EPK rdquo; apartments are one of the most affordable options for Sofia residents. According to the www.imoti.net website in the last month, 1/3 of the ldquo;EPK rdquo; studios available for sale were above the 10th floor. The average asking price for a one bedroom apartment in Mladost-2 where most the ldquo;EPK rdquo; apartments for sale are located, is euro;1,000 per m sup2; . The lowest asking price is for a 32 m sup2; studio on the 15th floor- euro;28,000 and the highest asking price is for a 38 m sup2; studio- euro;51,000. In the nearby neighborhood Musagenitsa prices vary from euro;1,000 to euro;1,198 for a m sup2;. The highest offer is for euro;59,900 and the lowest for euro; 45,000. In Lyulin-10 the prices are euro;26,000 and euro;25,890 respectively. The average price in Nadejda for an ldquo;EPK rdquo; home is euro;785 per m sup2;. When it comes to bigger apartments in monolithic in-situ cast concrete structure buildings, Lyulin-10 offers the highest number of 3 bedroom apartments for sale with prices per m sup2; from euro;643 to euro;930. Those large ldquo;EPK rdquo; apartments for sale are above the 10th floor. Lyulin-10 has more ldquo;EPK rdquo; 3-bed apartments for sale than the cumulative number of the same category apartments for sale in all of the Nadejda quarters. Depending of the proximity of a metro station, the prices in Mladost vary the most- from euro;60,000 to euro;130,000.
* * * Monitor Daily The prices of studio flats in the area of Vitosha Mountain decreased with 26%
(abbreviated) Since Novgember 2008 the average asking price for a studio in a residential building constructed with concrete panels (usually old buildings with bad isolation) in the south-western part of Sofia has dropped with 26%. The average asking prices are now under euro;1,000 now, which is a sign for a more sober and realistic thinking of the sellers. According to www.imot.bg there is no demand for this kind of apartments but the supply is constantly increasing. The owners are trying to sell quickly their apartments, usually in buildings constructed 30 years ago, and buy a home in a new contemporary development. Most of the offers for panel studio apartments are for sale in Ovcha Kupel-1 (40 offers). 14 offers for sale come from Gotse Delchev and a dozen from Ovcha Kupel- 2.The unwillingness of the banks to fund the purchase of an old panel apartment will continue to have a negative effect on the demand for such properties. Brokers anticipate that this would apply even for the panel properties in the prestigious quarters in the southern part of Vitosha Mountain. http://residential.bg/en/view_news.php?id=8 Monitor daily Slight increase in mortgage loans in April (abbreviated) There is a 20% increase of the closed mortgage loans deals for April compared to March, shows Credit center analysis. The demand comes mainly from individuals between 25-35 years of age (71.4%) who mainly work for international or successful Bulgarian companies and have considered their new home purchase well. 28.6% come from the 36-45 years old borrowers. The majority of these cases borrowers have cash for 40-50% of the required amount and the rest is taken as a bank loan. The average amount of mortgage loans has dropped to EUR 35,236 ndash; the levels, typical for the summer of 2007. The euro continues to be the most desired currency for mortgage loans, whereas the average financing accounts to 40-60% of the property value. According to Credit Center there will be many highly profitable offers for the months to follow but people need to carefully consider them as some of them may not be reliable enough. The company advises that people refer to real estate consultants who have profound knowledge on the market.

* * * 24 Hours daily
The registered drop in home prices in Bulgaria accounts for 5 to 30% during the last months. The highest reduction concerns panel flats and those under construction in suburban or poor areas with insufficient infrastructure and transportation. Some big neighborhoods in Sofia and Varna already offer prices as EUR 600-700 per m2. An year ago the offered prices did not fall below EUR 1000. * * * 24 Hours daily EUR 30 000 enough to buy panel apartments again (Abbreviated) During the last couple of years EUR 30 000 were highly insufficient to buy a property ndash; even to buy a one-bedroom apartment or a studio, no matter if panel one or new construction. Not to mention a larger dwelling. A couple of years ago even a 40 m2 flat in Sofia and Varna cost at least EUR 40,000. Prices in Sofia suburban neighborhoods such as Liulin and Druzhba exceeded EUR 1,000 EUR/m2, sometimes rated even higher than the newly constructed apartments. During the last few months, however, the same apartments, which could be bought for EUR 40,000, can be acquired for EUR 10,000 less. Even though the new price may seem to you highly profitable, be careful, advise real estate specialists. The offered properties may be problematic ones ndash; either not having the chance of obtaining an Act 16 permission, or an old one with many owners and mortgages. Offered prices One-bedroom apartments (40-45 m2) in Sofia can be bought for EUR 25,000 to 30,000. There are offers for panel, EPK or brick ones under construction with Act 16 but at poor locations. * * * http://www.mediapool.bg/show/?storyid=151985 New site for real estate property sale in 14 European countries, including Bulgaria

The new internet site which includes also Bulgarian properties for direct sales and rents covers countries and properties in Central and Eastern Europe. The site rsquo;s name is ProdamSam.com. Its founder is Salko Kriyestoraz, an architect, working in the real estate management and marketing field in New York for more than 15 years. ProdamSam.com covers information on properties from more than 14 countries in CEE. It functions in 12 languages with services in Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Montenegro, Macedonia, Serbia, Bosna amp; Herzegovina, Rumania, Moldova. Each owner of real estate property can post a sale/rent announcement. Architects, designers, engineers, lawyers, insurance companies and financial advisors can also advertise their services there. * * * Dnevnik daily Mortgaged properties for sale note a 25% increase (Abbreviated) Mortgaged properties for sale the first quarter of 2009 have increased with 1/3 in comparison with the same period in 2008. 90% of these come from non-serviced loans, the others are a result of non-paid taxes, etc. Many banks, however, prefer to hold the sale of these properties and to renegotiate the mortgage loans conditions with those borrowers, who have difficulties in servicing their loans. There are several options for renegotiating the loan ndash; the first one is to extend its term and to reduce the monthly fee; another one is to negotiate a grace period when the borrower pays only the interest rate or the principal for a fixed period of time. It is good to know that all defaults on loans are listed in the Central Credit Register, to which all banks have access. According to the State Procedure Act, when having a public sale of immovable property, the bidding starts from 50% of the offered price.
* * * Pari daily Reduced deals with uncompleted properties
The financial portal FinCity registers an increase of the mortgage and consumer loans compared to March this year. Renegotiating the loan parameters is also becoming more common practice.
However, the mortgage loans market is quite behind compared to the previous couple of years. FinCity also register a decrease of the average mortgage loan for the country. The selling prices of the properties, bought in April, remain high as they concern mainly properties with Act 16 or older, brick construction. * * * INTERESTING FACTS Telegraph daily ldquo;Tata quot; sells dwellings for euro; 5800 The Indian corporation might start building such properties in Europe as well After creating the cheapest car in the world, the Indian enterprise ldquo;Tata rdquo; will start selling the cheapest houses, announced ldquo;Daily Telegraph rdquo;. The four-place car became the sensation after its announcement in the beginning of 2008. The base version costs below USD 2000 and the company already has over 200,000 orders but for the time being has managed to produce only half of it. Encouraged by this success, ldquo;Tata housing rdquo; foresees to sell one-room apartments of 26 m2 for appr. EUR 5800. The more expensive option is for a 43 m2 apartment with a separate living-room and bedroom. The first complex, consisting of 1000 units is already under construction near Mumbai. The complex will also offer facilities as school, hospital, playgrounds and green space. The new apartments will cost only 224 euro/m2, which makes them the cheapest ones in the world. Same as ldquo;Nano rdquo;, these homes are designed for those Indian families, who could never afford this in other circumstances. Tata expects that millions of inhabitants will grab the chance to buy a decent piece of property and home that otherwise would be impossible to obtain. The company plans to start building other projects in Delhi and Bangalore. They even consider building this model in Europe or USE, says ldquo;Daily Telegraph rdquo;.