In recent years we have witnessed a floating appreciation of housing prices. At the same time, an increase in mortgage interest rates was expected, which never happened. “At the moment the banks have money. They are always announcing new and new promotions as well as extending existing ones. For example, one of the big banks is currently offering an interest rate of 2.18% for a loan over 100,000 EUR“, credit consultants comment.
These two, as well as other factors, lead people to buy homes primarily for personal use, rather than as an investment. Just over 60% of buyers this year acquired a home for their own use, according to survey data on the largest real estate website imot .bg. 29% acquired a home as an investment, of which 21% bought it to rent it out, and 8% - to renovate and sell it at a higher price at a later stage.
Exchanging one home for another also continues to be practiced, although quite rarely. The reason is precisely the accessible lending and saved funds, say analysts. 6% of respondents exchanged a larger for a smaller dwelling. Mostly, these are elderly people who need cash and decide to sell their larger home, acquire a smaller one, and with the amount they have left to live on. This year, about 5% of the respondents applied for the replacement of a smaller with a larger home. These are mostly people of working age who already have a child and need another room. They choose this option to avoid the mortgage loan and not to break the monthly budget.
You can see detailed statistics on average property prices in Bulgaria by cities and neighborhoods HERE