How to Buy in Bulgaria
If you are a foreign investor devoted to investing money through buying property in Bulgaria, then the following lines deserve your attention as they could be extremely helpful to you.
Herein you will find a brief description of the process of buying property in Bulgaria, both from a legal and practical standpoint, all things to note and bear in mind while purchasing your property.
If you read this, most likely you have already riveted your attention on a particular property or have a list of properties, and maybe you have signed a preliminary contract with an entrepreneur or other type of seller.
We at Propriety Legal always advise our clients, their friends and acquaintances or people who just consult our professional opinion on similar matters, to always seek legal help and advice when buying or simply entering into negotiations with a potential vendor, irrespective of its type and origin.
Saving legal fees in most cases leads to very large and sometimes dramatic losses for purchasers. Legal fees can be reasonable. By saving legal help buyers imperceptibly undermine the process of purchasing the property and jeopardize the security of their investment. That is what we strive to prevent at Propriety Legal. We provide legal assistance to purchasers of real estates in Bulgaria at reasonable legal fees.
Contact us by phone or fill out our contact form. We will respond within 24 hours.
Before or right after entering into negotiations we encourage you to inquire extensively as far as possible your contracting party’s history; its economic and professional history, its financial and legal status. Although there is no full guarantee, this inquiry can help you make the right decision.
In the next place you must scrutinize the documentation your contracting party derives its rights from. As an old Roman maxim says: “Nobody can transfer more rights than he actually has himself”, so this check is crucial. Contact a lawyer! It is important to know while talking about an entrepreneur, if the building rights have been arranged properly. What the terrain’s status is. Has there been a building permit issued? What are the building parameters? Can they really sell what they are selling? You have the right and actually ought to know if possible what their debts turn out to be in order to secure the development, any encumbrances in their port folio burdening the existing or future property subject of the transaction they are selling to you.
Since 2004 Bulgaria, Bulgarian property developers and local and foreign investors have got a very extensive experience with regard to the so-called “off plan developments”. Many of those purchases and developments were brought to a successful end however there were also a fair number of unrealized projects that failed due to various reasons such as poor business planning and false market conditions forecasts; generally management drawbacks. Also the lack of explicit legislation and regulation of this type of transactions in deed contributed extensively to the collapse of many developers and subsequently generated significant losses to local and foreign investors. This is one the reasons for having buyers now purchasing fully completed project developments, regardless of their higher property price.
However, there are numerous ways to ensure the security of your assets even being invested “off plan”.
Your means can be protected! Call us or email us!
When you buy it is very likely to sign a preliminary contract for sale-purchase of a real estate. When talking about “off plan” purchases it secures the payment of the installments. Whey buying fully completed properties it secures the deposits being parts of the sale price. To learn more about the nature and different types of deposits please read How to sell in Bulgaria.
By virtue of the law parties that sign a preliminary contract assume the obligation to make subsequently a final agreement.
The preliminary contract contains covenants that at least as a minimum repeat the terms and the essential clauses of the final agreement, the last to be concluded in the form of a notary deed.
The preliminary contract engenders the obligation of the parties to make a final agreement, backed up by the constitutive right to seek a judicial conclusion of the final agreement. It is the way law guarantees the predictable outcome of the transaction: the valid transfer of ownership from the seller to the buyer.
Make sure you understand all the covenants of the contract!
Don’t hesitate to seek qualified legal assistance. Your contractor, especially if an entrepreneur is certainly backed with legal service so you are not even. Refer to a Bulgarian lawyer to equate the chances of achieving a satisfactory outcome for you and your money.
The next stage of purchase is to supply a number of documents that are necessary for the valid transaction before a notary. These include declaring the source of funds for the purchase of the property, your civil and family status, etc.
You ought to know that the final agreement for purchase of a property is to be executed in the form of a deed before a notary (notary deeds). Only this contract transfers property absolute rights in Bulgaria perfectly. You can attend the notary public personally for the title execution on the agreed date and time or authorize your representative.
We highly recommend, whether attending personally the notary transaction or being represented by a third party to consult a professional Bulgarian lawyer. It is even better if the lawyer accompanies you personally before the notary public or that lawyer appears to be your legal representative at the transaction, in case you have decided not to attend. Many real estate brokers/agents or third parties provide representation at title executions and transactions. Some of them have learned the basic rules as a result of a long practice in the property fields. To a certain degree they can be used however remember that they have no formal legal training, they are not lawyers and cannot always foresee the legal consequences or take you out of a situation that can easily turn into a legal case; surely not in the favorable way for you.
We at Propriety Legal have been offering professional legal services to foreign investors in their capacity of purchasers of real properties in Bulgaria for several years now.
We represent the interests of buyers in the reddest hot spots of the country, such as the capital Sofia, Burgas, Nessebar, Sunny Beach, Sveti Vlas, Kosharitsa, Ravda, Aheloy, Pomorie, Obzor, Sozopol, Tsarevo and others. To the north thus being Varna, Kavarna and Balchik, and in winter resorts: Borovets, Bansko and Pamporovo.
Do not hesitate to contact us by calling one of our telephones and have a consultation with our lawyers or by filling out our Contact Form.
We respond within 24 hours.
We defend your interests in Bulgaria to the fullest extent.
Read more about our services with regard to real estates and transactions HERE.
After the notary transaction deeds should be registered at the Registry agency subdued to the relevant District Court so that the purchase matters to bona fide third parties.
Foreign investors should be registered for tax purposes at the BULSTAT register within the statutory term after the acquisition of a real estate or a property in Bulgaria. After registration a card similar to the bank credit cards is to be issued. This card and an original copy of the registered deed must be preserved physically by purchasers, not by their agents. If someone advises otherwise, immediately consult a lawyer to prevent further abuse.
All issues if any highlighted on this website are not an indication of future results. Every situation is different and must be evaluated on its own facts and circumstances and the applicable law.
We at Propriety Legal highly value confidentiality while working with clients which have visited our web site. We do not require personal data of clients or potential clients on this web site in order to avoid disclosure of any confidential or classified information.
This website is purely a public resource of general information which is intended, but not promised or guaranteed, to be complete, and up-to-date. This website is not a source of solicitation, or legal advice. Thus, the material provided on this website is not intended to create a lawyer-client relationship, and the receipt or viewing of this website does not constitute a lawyer-client relationship.
The owner of this website is a firm with lawyers licensed only in the Republic of Bulgaria. Do not send the owner of this website or anyone listed herein confidential information until you speak with one of our lawyers.