Buying a house in the countryside: Why Bulgarians are moving to villages
The real estate market in Bulgaria has been showing stable growth for a long time. And although the pandemic has halted the development, but not for long, and the segment continues to recover actively. The purchase of a house in the countryside is gaining more and more popularity in the country. Compared with last year, the demand for such properties has increased by 20%.
Experts point out that the interest in housing in quiet areas of Bulgaria is not a new trend for the local market, but in connection with the pandemic, it has become even more active. And according to realtors, the boom is not subsiding and the demand for such objects will be observed for a few more years. The fact is that many people who spent the lockdown in the limited conditions of the apartment or house, want to increase the options for self-isolation. Therefore, they are looking for a second home in the countryside, so that if necessary, they can leave the city apartment and enjoy the closeness to nature. Another factor in the increased demand for the countryside is the popularization of remote work. People are leaving the big cities with expensive real estate and buying spacious villas with their own land in the countryside.
Realtors note that some regions of the country are already experiencing a shortage of supply of such properties. In most cases, buyers are looking for homes that require minimal investment in repairs and are ready to move in.
Popular areas are Varna, Plovdiv and Veliko Tarnovo. There is also a high demand for properties within 50 km radius from Sofia. When looking for a place to live and a region, clients most often prefer villages with a developed infrastructure, those that are located near major highways.
In most cases the buyers are young families with children and people who carry out professional activity in a remote format and are not tied to a particular city. A high percentage of customers are looking for a second home for the weekend. Usually these people already have an apartment in the city and they want a change of scenery by coming to a house with a plot in a quiet area. Real estate in the countryside as an option for permanent residence is most often preferred by people of retirement age.
There is also a growing demand for apartments on the real estate market. The most popular are two-room apartments with an area of 60-70 square meters. The cost of such objects at the stage of construction is 55-70 thousand euros, and ready-made options are sold from 65-80 thousand euros and above. In second place in popularity are apartments with three rooms of 90-110 square meters. The price of such apartments starts from 85,000 euros in the objects under construction, and from 120,000 at the ready housing.