The third month of the year has probably seen the most difficult times for the real estate market behind its back. But this is situation only at a first glance. Accumulation of sale offers led to abundance of supply and decreased prices. This trend is clearly visible in the most expensive Bulgarian town last year – Varna, where on March 10 over 1,200 apartments were offered with an average price per square metre of approximately 530 euros. The average price of a standard one bedroom apartment is just over EUR32,000, for about 50-60 square metres area. Even in the central part of the biggest Black Sea port city, this most sought after type of housing – the two-bedroom flats are now available at prices of EUR800-880 per square meter, or about EUR45,000 for a standard apartment. Similar levels were known to brokers from Varna in the middle of 2007 and, shortly before the big boom in prices, experts comment. In their view, the persistent decline in housing prices over the past four years has reached its end and the trend should now be expected to reverse. But this can happen only in a normal economic situation and if the average income of Bulgarians stays approximately equal to that in 2007. The situation is quite different – the unemployment rate is on the rise and the reduction in real purchasing power of the average Bulgarian makes even today’s prices very difficult for most potential buyers. This can mean a new downturn, experts note, and the next possible bottom for the prices are their 2004 levels. Then the average cost of a standard one-bedroom in the centre of the capital was about EUR35,000. For comparison – the average price of the same property type in 2008 was more than EUR60,000.
About EUR600 a square metre is the average price of two-bedroom apartments in Sofia, according to brokers. According to their sale offers have increased in numbers by at least 30 percent in first two months of this year and has further affected prices.
