Buying or Selling real property in Bulgaria
Buying real property in Bulgaria is relatively easy, although you either need to be present in the Republic of Bulgaria or you need to authorize a representative. The second option has some additional complications which we will review below.
Overall it is a good investment to buy real property in Bulgaria, either for business needs or as an investment, since the market has been growing for about 30 years now.
Legal assistance
Buy real property is always tied to a substantial investment. We advise you to seek legal assistance in each and every instance since even the most mundane real property deal might have hidden encumberments or defects. You should check our common mistakes when buying real property page.
The service
In most cases our service includes the following:
Verification of the ownership (is the seller the actual owner);
Verification of the administrative status of the property (regulation and cadastral);
Verification that the property is free of real property encumberments;
Preparation of a preliminary agreement (if you need information regarding the point of preliminary agreements kindly visit our page);
Assistance and/or acquisition of all necessary documents;
Preparation of the notary deed;
Filing of a declaration for tax registration (mandatory);
Supplementary assistance – transfer of the batches for communal services, like water, electricity and heating.
* All of the above actions can be implemented by us with a power of attorney if you so choose.
If you have further questions kindly contact us.
The Procedure for Buying real property
Third county foreigners (non-EU) are allowed to own real property in Bulgaria, as long as they do not become owners of the land itself. This can be circumvented by creating a commercial company with the sole purpose of acquiring the desired property. That might sound tedious but it is neither too time consuming, nor costly. Kindly check our – establish a company page.
The above does not concern EU citizens who are allowed to buy and own land in Bulgaria .
Some additional information
Properties in Bulgaria are measures in square meters and therefore the price is also calculated in the same measurement. If you are not able to cross reference the property you have chosen with similar ones to see if the sale price is just we can provide such assistance.
In most cases, especially for properties build after 2010, the constructed area of the property (that is the total area of the property) includes the common parts of the building wherein the property is located. This means in simple words that a 100 square meters apartment will be closer to 75 sq.m. in actual size, depending on the building.
If you have chosen to use the services of a real property agent or agency you should bear in mind that their commission vary between 2,5 to 4,5% of the sale price. Even more important as their fee is directly related to the conclusion of the deal they have significant interest in pushing it on. This is a problem in cases in which the property has any issues what so ever, be it legal or other. It is best never to allow the real property agent or anyone else to pressure you into a contract before a proper legal review (due diligence) has been implemented. This can save you significant worries and funds.
The price listed for the property may be negotiated down, especially if legal risk are identified. In this regard a consultation will serve you twofold. First it will show you the legal risk of buying the property, and second it might provide you with leverage to drive the price down.
Taxes, fees and other payments
Buying real property in Bulgaria is related to playing a number of fees additionally to the sale price. This include but might not be limited to notary fee, fee for registration of the deal with the Registration agency, and acquisition of property tax with the respective municipality. The aforementioned fees vary in some regard so attention is required to be prepared for their amount.
Some additional fees might be incurred depending on the situation.
After the acquisition of a real property it must be registered with the respective municipality. Subsequently every year a local tax and garbage disposal fee are due.