HOW TO BUY PROPERTY IN BULGARIA
Choose your property online based on independent, comprehensive information that we will provide on request. You may also take the opportunity of an escorted viewing of the property.
If your property includes land, then you need under our law to register a local company that will own this land. This regulation is expected to change in the nearest future but in the meantime foreigners can only own land by setting up a Bulgarian company. There are no obligations in respect of employing local personnel or actually running any kind of activities. The cost of registering a company at the Registry Agency and our fee for the assistance is about 400 euros.
We shall prepare all necessary documents for setting up a local company. They will be made in Bulgarian language accompanied by a copy in English , translated by a registered and fully licensed sworn translator.
On basis of these documents we can apply for setting up Your limited liability company and open a special bank account , which is compulsory for Your company registration.Reserving the property
After you have made the decision to buy a certain property you need to place a deposit in order to reserve it. The deposit is 10% of the selling price. Please note that our comission of 3% (take in mind that the minimal amount of it is around EUR 500.00) must be paid together with the reservation deposit and it is non refundable. Upon receipt of cleared funds, we will take the property off the market for a period of 30 days. During this period of time you need to start the purchase and pay the rest of the property price.
The reservation deposit of 10% is refunded when you complete on your purchase.
If the vendor pulls out of the deal the reservation deposit can be transferred to another property we sell, but if you decide not to buy then no refund will be made.The Notary Act
After setting up a company, bank account and completing all checks and searches you will need to pay the remaining balance for the property.
Now it is time for the last step. This is the final stage when you will complete the purchase and become the new owner of the property. You must confirm before the Notary Public the agreement to buy the property. The state amd Municipal taxes must be paid, the full amount paid to the vendor and the title deed will be transfered into your company name.
The whole purchasing process usually takes a month to be finalized.
Once a date for the final completion is agreed upon, it is possible to realize the deal sooner. Note, however, that you cannot have the date fixed back in time, so it is imperative that finances are available by the stipulated dates. It is wise to keep all time limits realistic since failure to comply with them spells considerable penalties and may even lead to loss of the property.
After the deposit has been paid the remaining amount of the purchase price needed for completion can easily be transferred to a Bulgarian bank account from your country.
You should expect to receive the title deed a couple of weeks after the final completion date.
The originals of the documents are written in Bulgarian, but an English translation is always available on request and the fee charged for it is negligible.
One thing you should be familiar with is the discrepancy between the actual price paid for the property, and the price appearing on the title deeds.
In Bulgaria "tax value" differs from "purchase price" in that tax value is much lower than the actual transaction price for reasons of taxation. Most Bulgarian property owners insist on keeping the tax value written in the title deed to avoid paying heavier taxes on the property transfer.
If you are buying an apartment and it is still occupied by the owners, you should not expect them to move out immediately- it usually takes a month. However, this period is negotiable if the buyer has reasons to require his newly purchased property vacated earlier.
It has always proved useful to refer this matter to your estate agency and be assisted in any negotiations with the seller.LOCAL TAXES
Once you have assumed possession of a property, there are local annual taxes to pay. They are incredibly low in comparison to Western Europe- e.g. the annual rate of tax on a house being 0.15 % of the purchase price.
The only additional tax you are required to pay is garbage tax; this varies depending on the location and the size of the property. The amount of the latter ranges from EUR 15 to EUR 25 per year.
In case you have purchased an apartment, local taxes are still due, together with annual maintenance and management fees fixed by the developer or the managing agent.
Choose your property online based on independent, comprehensive information that we will provide on request. You may also take the opportunity of an escorted viewing of the property.
If your property includes land, then you need under our law to register a local company that will own this land. This regulation is expected to change in the nearest future but in the meantime foreigners can only own land by setting up a Bulgarian company. There are no obligations in respect of employing local personnel or actually running any kind of activities. The cost of registering a company at the Registry Agency and our fee for the assistance is about 400 euros.
We shall prepare all necessary documents for setting up a local company. They will be made in Bulgarian language accompanied by a copy in English , translated by a registered and fully licensed sworn translator.
On basis of these documents we can apply for setting up Your limited liability company and open a special bank account , which is compulsory for Your company registration.Reserving the property
After you have made the decision to buy a certain property you need to place a deposit in order to reserve it. The deposit is 10% of the selling price. Please note that our comission of 3% (take in mind that the minimal amount of it is around EUR 500.00) must be paid together with the reservation deposit and it is non refundable. Upon receipt of cleared funds, we will take the property off the market for a period of 30 days. During this period of time you need to start the purchase and pay the rest of the property price.
The reservation deposit of 10% is refunded when you complete on your purchase.
If the vendor pulls out of the deal the reservation deposit can be transferred to another property we sell, but if you decide not to buy then no refund will be made.The Notary Act
After setting up a company, bank account and completing all checks and searches you will need to pay the remaining balance for the property.
Now it is time for the last step. This is the final stage when you will complete the purchase and become the new owner of the property. You must confirm before the Notary Public the agreement to buy the property. The state amd Municipal taxes must be paid, the full amount paid to the vendor and the title deed will be transfered into your company name.
The whole purchasing process usually takes a month to be finalized.
Once a date for the final completion is agreed upon, it is possible to realize the deal sooner. Note, however, that you cannot have the date fixed back in time, so it is imperative that finances are available by the stipulated dates. It is wise to keep all time limits realistic since failure to comply with them spells considerable penalties and may even lead to loss of the property.
After the deposit has been paid the remaining amount of the purchase price needed for completion can easily be transferred to a Bulgarian bank account from your country.
You should expect to receive the title deed a couple of weeks after the final completion date.
The originals of the documents are written in Bulgarian, but an English translation is always available on request and the fee charged for it is negligible.
One thing you should be familiar with is the discrepancy between the actual price paid for the property, and the price appearing on the title deeds.
In Bulgaria "tax value" differs from "purchase price" in that tax value is much lower than the actual transaction price for reasons of taxation. Most Bulgarian property owners insist on keeping the tax value written in the title deed to avoid paying heavier taxes on the property transfer.
If you are buying an apartment and it is still occupied by the owners, you should not expect them to move out immediately- it usually takes a month. However, this period is negotiable if the buyer has reasons to require his newly purchased property vacated earlier.
It has always proved useful to refer this matter to your estate agency and be assisted in any negotiations with the seller.LOCAL TAXES
Once you have assumed possession of a property, there are local annual taxes to pay. They are incredibly low in comparison to Western Europe- e.g. the annual rate of tax on a house being 0.15 % of the purchase price.
The only additional tax you are required to pay is garbage tax; this varies depending on the location and the size of the property. The amount of the latter ranges from EUR 15 to EUR 25 per year.
In case you have purchased an apartment, local taxes are still due, together with annual maintenance and management fees fixed by the developer or the managing agent.
