Bulgarian Properties - ski

Bansko, Borovets and Pamporovo are the three main choices for ski resorts in Bulgaria and many potential buyers and skiers are scratching their heads to find out which one might be the best for them. In fact, there is no perfect place, as its often the case in the real estate business. Every one has to choose according to his/hers taste, holiday plans and property investment objectives. Here is in a nutshell the rundown of their main features.

Part One - Bansko

It used to be an isolated typical Balkan village known to Bulgarians as the place of birth of many national figures and the Banski Starets, a dry spicy sausage. The history of Bansko goes back ages as one can tell by the high stone fences built to defend houses and households from the Ottomans. As with most mountain communities, the people of Bansko were workoholics before Wall Street coined the term and part of their earnings went out to bribe the local Pashas or to keep the bad guys at bay. There werent any magnificent seven peasant lovers to protect them; they had to rely on themselves. And they did well.

Nowadays Bansko is a small town of 10,000 visited by more than 400,000 skiers and holiday makers in high season. A short walk around town will show to what extend things have changed in the last years. Construction is a booming business here with no less than 30 sites open over the last 12 months. You can get a piece of a potato farm land for 200 euros the square meter, if youre lucky, and the average price of a new apartment is 1300 euros/sqm.

If you have the itch to jump on the next plane and buy the dream Bansko apartment you have seen on the net, make sure you know exactly where it is being built. I have maps on and youd better get familiar with some street names and neighborhoods. As one can tell after visiting a dozen property web sites, very few publish maps but most claim they are located close both to the gondola lift and to the old Bansko. Thats one statement that doesnt hold water when you go there and check the distances. Because the distance from the central Vaptsarov square to the lift station on my car's odometer is exactly 1840m. Thats a little bit over a mile. Not thats a huge distance by Aspen standards but Bansko is not Aspen, the streets are narrow and the potholes tricky.

If staying close to the gondola is a must look for the Gramadeto district. Thats the name of a small area uphill from the Bansko center, where the local people used to grow onions and potatoes. There are no more onions and potatoes in Gramadeto. Its one big construction site with heavy trucks and cement mixers working to make new homes and biger potholes. During high season however, all heavy work is banned. The happy residents who already bought there take a short horizontal stroll to the gondola while their new ski apartments quietly appreciate under the postcard Bansko sun.

Meanwhile downtown, coffee shops and taverns are opening up and smoke of grilled meat starts to fill up the air. There are over 400 restaurants and taverns (mehanas) in Bansko but I dont think somebody took seriously to count them. The very pleasant pedestrian and cobble stone streets are filled with them. The cuisine is very similar all over, the service varies, so when you find a place to your taste just stick with it. In another piece Ill pay tribute to my favorites.

Bansko real estate listings located near the old center do have a story to tell. For starters, this is what makes Bansko Bansko- the old wood houses with the thick stone fences and the smoke filled dusk. Even after a tough night at the local Irish pub you cant mistake it for Tignes or Chamonix.

Then if you want to spent your summer time off in your new studio or to rent it out in low season, being close to the gondola doesnt help much: the lift is shut for the summer, most hotels also. Gramadeto has this melancholic feeling about it like Brighton beach in December. At the same time the central square attracts the crowds with outdoor cafes, live music and flowers everywhere. Bansko works hard to become a year-round destination. The annual jazz festival is getting good reviews; a golf course is being built nearby. Not that I play golf but its a nice feature to have on a sales brochure.

Stay tuned. Next, Borovets ski resort near Sofia.

The two newest members of the EU are the eastern European, former communist nations of Romania and Bulgaria; they joined the European Union on the 1st of January this year and prior to their entry there was huge speculation, especially among the British and Irish, about whether an investment made into the real estate property markets of either country was a good investment.

Now that both countries have joined the EU, and many have already made a commitment to invest in property in Bulgaria and Romania, its time to review their decisions and look at the future projections for new investors examining the prospects of the property markets in both countries.

Leading up to EU entry many investors sought to target property in Romania and Bulgaria because they had already witnessed the positive returns that other investors had derived in the property markets of previous entrants such as Hungary and Poland for example. As a result, Bulgaria in particular developed an active property market almost overnight. In fact it was completely due to EU accession that Romania and Bulgaria developed a property market at all, because if it was left to local demand to fuel the real estate sector neither country would have taken off.

This strong international demand for property stock in Bulgaria and Romania spiked the medias interest and once the media became interested and began promoting the perceived financial benefits of investing in either nation, property investor interest surged even more. Meeting this demand for investment property s