The Prosecutors Office in the town of Smolyan has launched investigations into Russian investors pouring money in construction of hotels in Pamporovo, Bulgarian news agency BTA reported on February 29.The prosecutors seek to make sure that no illegal money was used for the construction of hotels in Pamporovo mountain resort. Similar inquests have been carried out since 2006.
Polands real estate developer Globe Trade Center GTC, which has mall projects in the Bulgarian cities of Stara Zagora, Varna and Bourgas, as well as several plots in Sofia, has announced plans to invest about 1.5 billion euro in new projects across Central and East Europe CEE in 20082009, investor.bg reported. The companys activity will be directed primarily towards acquiring land and developing new projects.GTCs profit in 2007 stood at 261 million euro, a 32 per cent markup on 2006. The companys profit for the last quarter of the year alone recorded a 376 per cent year on year increase, peaking at 60 million euro. Company officials commented that this could be attributed to the completion of new office buildings in Serbia and Poland, comprising a 46 000 sq m net leasable area.
More than half of Bulgarians seeking to buy property will use mortgage loans to finance the purchase, a survey commissioned by Raiffeisenbank and carried out by GfK Bulgaria showed, as quoted by Bulgaria news agency BTA.The survey, carried out between January 7 and 15, covered individuals aged between 26 and 55 in Sofia, Plovdiv, Varna, Bourgas, Rousse, Pleven and Stara Zagora.
John Cutts, the founder and chief executive of commercial property developer Parkridge, is continuing his expansion into East Europe, the Financial Times reported on February 27.Although the his initial plans envisaged expansion to Poland, given its key location, he also saw good opportunities for investment in retail compounds in Bulgaria and Ukraine.
Bourgas city hall plans to build three new residential areas in the suburbs, it emerged after mayor Dimitur Nikolov and his deputy in charge of construction, Kostadin Markov, met Bulgaria Building and Construction Chambers members and members of the Chamber of Engineers in Investment Projects, Dnevnik daily reported on February 28.Kiosheto neighbourhood, the area between Srafovo and Bourgas and Kraimorie neighbourhood will be developed as residential districts. The buildings planned for construction are two and threestoreys, but also skyscrapers.
The draft bill of Bulgarias Condominium Act is ineffective and has been written in such a way as to serve the interests of heat, electricity and water utility companies, professor Vladimir Petrov from the Civil Association against Corruption and Illegal Construction said, as quoted by Dnevnik daily.According to Petrov, the draft law in its current form aimed to deprive properties from owners who do not pay their utility fees.
Sale prices of municipal apartments in Sofia will rise by two to 2.5 times, depending on their location, according to the amended ordinance on prices of municipal residential property, adopted by Sofia municipal council on February 28.Rents of municipal dwellings will rise by 30 per cent, the city hall secretary Rossen Zhelyazkov told reporters, as quoted by Bulgarian news agency BTA.
Investment Corporation of Dubai offered 3 billion euro for Inmobiliaria Colonial, the Spanish developer that owns of Riofisa, which is developing two projects in Bulgaria worth more than 450 million euro, Bloomberg reported on February 28.Investment Corporation of Dubai bid 1.85 euro for each share of Colonial, which lost half its market value in six the past months, on February 27. The offer is 8.8 per cent higher than the closing price of the previous day.
The Ukrainian property market has recorded remarkable rises in all its segments. Prices of retail, office and industrial areas have reached the highest levels in Central and East Europe CEE region, driven by lack of supply and increasing demand, Kyiv Post reported, cited by investor.bg.Foreign and local companies are quickly expanding their activity in the country and, consequently, demand for office space is constantly growing, surpassing the most optimistic expectations, according to Nick Cotton, regional director of DTZ real estate adviser in Ukraine.
The Sofia residential housing market continued to be strong throughout the second half of 2007 and, according to the latest research findings from Colliers International, there were significant price increases in most locations.However, in a different sector of the market, the supply of holiday properties around the country had slowed down, the report said. Although there was a 16 per cent increase in the number of holiday homes available in H2 2007, this needed to be reviewed in comparison with the annual increase from H2 2006 of 170 per cent in mountain resorts and 65 per cent in coastal resorts.