THE PROCESS AND EXPENSES INVOLVED IN BUYING A PROPERTY IN BULGARIA

Until 2012, after Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007, as a foreign national in order to be able to buy a house with land you need to set up a Bulgarian limited company. This is because foreign nationals are not permitted to own land in Bulgaria prior to EU membership.
This may seem a lot of hassle but there is no need for concern. The process is straight-forward and we have helped over one hundred of our clients set up Bulgarian limited companies and we will talk you through the process now.
The company will buy the property and will own the land. You will be the owner of the company and, respectively, of the land. Our lawyers will help you set up the company and will do all the necessary paperwork to purchase the property on your behalf.
NB: Not required when purchasing apartments – as you are not purchasing the land, just the apartment
The process is set out below:
1. With our help and support you will set-up your Bulgarian company. You may do this in person or by authorising us to do this through signing a Power Of Attorney. (This would need to be signed and stamped and the Bulgarian Embassy in London or while you are viewing properties with us in Bulgaria)
2. 5000 BG Lev needs to be deposited into a company bank account - this is the starting capital of your company. It stays there until registration – for about 4-5 weeks. After that the 5000 BG Lev can be withdrawn and used as part of the payment for the property.
3. 500 Euros are fees for the setting up of the limited company, these fees include lawyers’ fees who prepare all the documents for the company, go to different services to register it and arrange all procedures and documents, plus all papers officially translated and stamped into English and posted back to you.
And that’s it- your company is prepared. Now you are ready to buy your dream property. We will then proceed and acquire the property ownership rights for you, checking all the legal documentations and ownership papers and then you become the new owner.
Once you have registered a Bulgarian company you can use it in the future for different activities or for other property purchases.
Additional Expenses
Please note that you must pay all other conveyance fees related to buying a home in Bulgaria and only the solicitor can state the exact amount for your chosen property. This will include:

1. Land/Property tax
2. All lawyer fees
3. All notary fees
4. All court taxes

Land tax, Notary fee is dependant on the declared value of property, which by mutual agreement between buyer and seller can sometimes be different from the price entered on document of sale. If both buyer and seller agree, it’s quite common for a lower declared price to be entered on the Contract of Sale. This can lessen the Capital Gains Tax liability for the seller and save the buyer a considerable amount in Land Tax, especially on the more expensive properties. Unless customer advice different the government valuation tax will be written on the deeds.
If you wish us to give you an estimate of what these may cost e-mail us with the reference number of the property and we will give you an example.
NB: these figures do vary from region to region and are dependant different variables including solicitors and house prices.
Our Commission and Our Commitment to You
We at NIG Invest Ltd are very glad to inform our customers that since 01 Jan 2009 we charge ONLY 2% COMMISSION on purchase of a property, which includes the following:

Check the legality of ALL documentation
We take pride in knowing that our clients trust us and we have earned that trust because we check absolutely everything on your behalf. This includes a full check on property ownership documents, land sketch, securing proper title deeds. Securing the property & organising the preliminary agreement - If you are personally in Bulgaria to secure the property then a 10% deposit and preliminary contract must be signed. If you wish to reserve a property from the UK we will place your 10% deposit for you and sign the preliminary contract on your behalf.

NB: Once a reservation deposit is paid you will normally have 30 days in which to complete the deal (with agreement of the seller this can be extended). The deposit is non-refundable unless the seller breaks the contract.
Signing for your new property
This is done at the government Notary office. The final payment will then be made and the Notary fee.
NB: The Solicitor and Notary state these fees, they depend on the value of the property entered into the final deed.
Declaration of the purchased property in the Tax office
Translating Notary deed into English
Our translators are fully trained in their translation skills, we will get all documents stamped by the government department that puts a legal requirement on us to make sure the translations are absolutely correct. Giving you total confidence that you understand and are fully aware of what you are buying.
We are with you all the way along this process and we will be here after if you need us.

General economic trends in Bulgaria
Major Industries: Chemicals and plastics, machine building and metal working, refined petroleum products, food processing, construction materials, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, textiles and clothing, power generation (including nuclear)

Agriculture products: vegetables, fruits, tobacco, livestock, wine, wheat, barley, sunflowers, sugar beets

Main trade partners: Germany, Turkey, Italy, Greece, Russia, France.

The government of Simeon II National Movement (SNM), which took office in July 2001, followed a policy of liberalisation and further stabilisation of the economy. In December 2001 the seventh, two-year stand-by agreement with the IMF was concluded, which included a US$ 300 million fund facility to be disbursed in nine tranches. Following the agreement with the IMF, a Memorandum clarifying the economic policy was drafted, setting forth the following economic priorities:

1. sustaining economic growth of 5-7% on average per year;
2. attracting between US$ 1-1.2 billion of FDI per year;
3. creating friendly business environment for Bulgarian and foreign investors;
4. maintaining prudent fiscal policy with the currency board arrangement in place;
5. implementing financial and budget discipline and reducing the budget deficit to zero in 2005;
6. privatising all applicable state-owned assets by 2005 year-end;
7. restructuring and liberalisation of natural monopolies;
8. bringing banks back to their normal stature of business lenders in the national economy and generating the conditions needed for an efficiently operating capital market.

Most of the priorities, especially in the field of monetary and fiscal policy, were successfully achieved in the period 2001-2005. The government introduced tax changes aimed at cutting direct taxes and improving the investment environment while maintaining fiscal discipline. The Bulgarian Customs service was put under the management of the British consulting company Crown Agents. Steps in active debt management led to the success of November’s 2001 EUR 250 million Eurobond issue. In the end of 2002, Bulgaria was recognised as a functioning free market economy.

The consumer price inflation in 2003 – 2007 was in the region of 4 – 6.5% p.a.; real GDP grew healthily at 4.5 – 6.6% p.a. Business Monitor International (BMI) forecasts a real GDP growth of 5.8% and 5.3% for 2008 and 2009, respectively. Inflation was significantly higher in 2007, when the global rise of food and oil prices resulted in a 12.5% year-end inflation. Expectations for the following years are that inflation will return to normal levels.

BMI estimates a 9.5% year-on-year inflation in 2008 and 5.5% in 2009. In 2006, industrial production grew by 5.9% compared to the year before and this trend of active development is expected to continue. At the end of 2007, the reported unemployment rate was 6.9% (as compared to 9.1% in 2006 year-end, 10.7% in 2005 year-end, 12.2% in 2004 year-end and 13.7% in 2003 yearend).

The government has undertaken significant construction activities. These ambitious infrastructural projects, along with recurrent structural reforms will enable the further decline in unemployment forecasted by BMI at 6% and 5.8% for 2008 and 2009.

When parliamentary elections were held in June 2005, the outcome was more complicated than had been expected. After seven weeks of prolonged negotiations, a broad alliance between “Coalition for Bulgaria”, “Simeon II National Movement”, and “Movement for Rights and Freedom” emerged. Some of the political priorities set forth by the government in its program include: Bulgaria’s EU accession; enhanced judicial reform; increased levels of investment activity; continuation in the processes of privatisation and concessions granting; guaranteed and accessible healthcare system; sustainable economic growth of 6-8% p.a.; preservation of the currency board, restricting budget expenditure up to 40% of GDP; gradual reduction of the tax burden; bringing the long-term unemployment rate down to under 10% through job creation.

In 2007 the government experienced social pressure stemming from the disagreement on pay-related issues with major social and employment groups, including teachers, medics and miners. As a result, in September 2007, Bulgarian teachers went on strike demanding a fair salary increase and improvement of the quality of education in Bulgaria. One month later, an agreement was reached but the credibility and the public rating of the ruling coalition were damaged. Nevertheless, despite the social and economic challenges faced in 2007, there has been no serious threat of social and political instability for the ruling coalition.