Housing prices in Bulgaria will not become cheaper, but double-digit growth will gradually be left behind. This is predicted by the executive director of “Bulgarian Properties“ Polina Stoykova. According to Eurostat data, Bulgaria is in second place in Europe in terms of annual housing price increases in the second quarter of 2026 with 15.5%, after Portugal with 16.5%.
However, on a quarterly basis, the picture is already different. Between the first and second quarters, prices in our country increased by 4.5%. Stoykova explains the difference by the fact that the annual indicator compares the second quarter of 2026 with the same period in 2025, when the market was already entering a phase of accelerated price increases.
According to her, the main impetus came from the rapid increase in prices in the second half of last year and at the beginning of this year, after the decision to accept Bulgaria into the eurozone. Peak levels were recorded at the end of 2025 and the beginning of 2026.
Buyers are no longer in a hurry
A change is also observed in the behavior of buyers. After a period in which the fear of a new price increase accelerated decisions, people are now comparing more offers and taking longer to evaluate. “Deals are already happening more slowly”, Stoykova tells BGNES.
For sellers, this means stronger competition and greater importance of a realistic price. A well-positioned property can find a buyer in a few days, but in a stable market, the normal time for a deal is between one and three months.
Stoykova expects annual growth to slow to around 10% and below 10% in the next quarter or the quarter after that. This is a change in pace, not a forecast of a price drop.
Sofia remains the most difficult market for buyers
The most serious problem remains the affordability of housing. In one year, the average price in Sofia has increased by around 600-700 euros per square meter. If in 2024, homes were sold for an average of about 2,000 euros per square meter, at the end of 2025 the levels reached nearly 2,700 euros.
In 2026, average prices in the capital remain between 2,600 and 2,700 euros per square meter. The affordability coefficient initially deteriorated to about 1.5, but income growth has partially offset the increase and the indicator is now around 1.4-1.38.
Mortgage lending is losing momentum
Interest rates on housing loans remain low. Data from the Bulgarian National Bank show an average interest rate of 2.42% in August. At the same time, the volume of new business on housing loans decreased by 6.5% on a monthly basis to 621.7 million euros.
According to Stoykova, the slowdown in lending is one of the arguments for a more moderate increase in prices. Previously, housing loans grew by 20-30% annually, and in separate periods the growth reached about 40%. Now banks continue to offer good conditions to clients with stable incomes, but they evaluate the profile of candidates more carefully.
The strongest interest remains in new construction, including housing sold "on the green". However, attractive projects are limited, as construction costs are rising, and some developers are waiting for a more advanced stage of construction before setting final prices.
There can be no talk of a decrease in the price of properties for now. New construction price lists are changing in small increments and more often up than down. The expectation is that the market will normalize through slower transactions and more moderate growth, not a reversal of direction.