Bulgaria seems to have been created for Russians to buy resort properties there. The geographical proximity of our countries is complemented by a similarity of mentality, an almost common linguistic and cultural environment, numerous historical parallels and one religion. Russians feel quite comfortable in Bulgaria. Let's add here more than attractive housing prices. Both in terms of price and level of perception, a typical apartment on the Bulgarian coast is now comparable to a good SUV - that is, for the middle class, not to mention wealthier people, it is not out of reach. Taking into account both of these factors, it becomes clear that Bulgaria as a mass market simply has no alternative for us. Therefore, although the crisis influenced the decrease in the volume of Russian transactions with Bulgarian real estate, it was not as stylish as in many other areas. Moreover, according to some estimates, the deferred demand even increased - at the peak of the crisis, many considered various options for investing money, but did not implement them, postponing until better times. But there are also problems. The situation is different with the British, Germans and Scandinavians, who at the beginning of the decade just turned the flywheel of the Bulgarian resort real estate market. Having no particular attachment to Bulgaria, they bought housing, focusing only on the phenomenal market growth rates characteristic of that period. It is not surprising that during the crisis, when prices stopped rising and financing became less available, European buyers left the market, leaving the Bulgarian developers, who had already launched hundreds of projects based on the previous level of demand, somewhat perplexed. The empty niche remained unfilled. The Russians, on whom the Bulgarians now pin their main hopes, cannot yet return even to their pre-crisis volume of transactions, let alone any increase. And the projects that were originally built for economical Europeans are not very suitable for us. Most of them are located at a distance from the sea, have small areas of apartments or houses, little or no infrastructure. So the decline in average market prices throughout 2009 was inevitable. Projects with not the best location and complexes under construction were especially affected. The biggest discounts had to go to those developers who could not get bank financing to continue construction. However, projects that are ready or close to completion, as well as well-located projects, as a rule, have kept the price bar at a fairly high level. With my own eyes Paradoxical as it may seem, the Bulgarian projects that have shown the greatest stability during the crisis remain somewhat in the shadows. Having a stable financial position and quite objective competitive advantages, their developers prefer to conduct sales with a minimum discount or even according to a price list. At the same time, the greatest marketing activity is observed around projects, the owners of which are vitally important to get at least some money from buyers. Their main weapon is large commissions to realtors, and they, in turn, describe the non-existent advantages of the complexes, the very construction of which is often in question. What about a buyer who would like to take advantage of the market situation and get a good discount, but at the same time does not want to risk money? The advice is simple - before booking a property, you need to visit Bulgaria and see what the money will be paid for. This is the only way to understand whether the beautiful illustrations in the booklets are lying, whether the construction is actually underway, whether the location corresponds to the promises of realtors. Check all the documents on the spot, study the contracts with a magnifying glass, and if everything is in order, and you like the project itself, feel free to buy. Now is a really good time for that.
