Life in Bulgaria & Beyond

The International Law Partnership Ceases Trading

2009-07-13T09:08:00.002+03:00

The International Law Partnership, headed by John Howell, is closing its doors citing the economic climate and the fact that many of its clients, developers in Bulgaria, are going bust and therefore not paying their bills.

Started in 1979, the firm entered international property law work in 1986 and became very involved in property development issues in Bulgaria.

However, in recent times, there has been some disquiet on certain forums about the fees charged and the work done, most notably with regard to disgruntled clients of the former developer and agent, Bulgarian Dreams.

The International Law Partnership were apparently working in connection with WatchDog on exposing problems with Bulgarian Dreams and attended several meetings for action groups set up to expose Bulgarian Dreams and fight for money back for a handful of the hundreds of British that have lost money on developments sold by Bulgarian Dreams. A number of people paid 500 pounds each to the ILP for advice and help sorting out problems with Bulgarian Dreams.

What is now to happen with these people is unclear. The press release stating The International Law Partnership is to cease practising can be read here -
and for more details about action groups concerning Bulgarian Dreams please visit the Off Plan Collective forum.

Long Term Rentals Available

2009-06-22T19:19:00.002+03:00

Renting for a few months is a great way of experiencing life in Bulgaria without committing yourself fully to a way of life that may not suit you or may not be as expected. If you are considering buying in Bulgaria with a view to moving there permanently, I would suggest renting for a minimum of 12 months so that you experience the hot summers and the cold winters and it gives you the chance to check your finances will be able to cope. I recently had tenants move out of one of my places without notice and leaving behind large bills because they found that Bulgaria was not the dirt cheap place many expect it to be. Over the winter they managed to wrack up enormous electric bills of around 300 Euros for January and then around 150 Euros for February.

So before you commit yourself and maybe your family to living in Bulgaria, try renting long term and make sure you can cope in the long run. If you decide Bulgaria is not for you, then at worst you have experienced a year living in another country and culture, and at best, you will have fallen in love with Bulgaria and know you are making the right decision.

And renting gives you far more time to check out different areas, view properties, make new friends and do renovations on somewhere if you buy during your rental period.

Available for long term rent:

2 apartments in a renovated villa, set in a securely fenced plot of 800sm with a barn. Rent of 200 E/mth per apartment plus utility bills or 350E/mth for both apartments.

Large 4 bedroom house, ideal to run a B&B. Downstairs contained ensuite bedroom, kitchen area and lounge, upstairs there are 3 bedrooms and bathroom. 1000sqm plot with BBQ house. Unfurnished - 350 E/mth plus bills.

2 bedroom house with separate guest annex, small garden and bbq area, furnished and ideal to run as B&B. 350 E/mth plus bills.

Visit TheRentalBug for more details.

Ready for a change? Why not exchange?

2009-05-06T11:38:00.002+03:00

Are you struggling to sell your house?

Try Permanent Property Exchange - There are many people in a similar situation, wanting to move but are unable to do so because of the slow property market. A property exchange offers you the chance to find an alternative property in the area you want to move to and swap your property for that one. There is no need for values to be exactly the same as you can downgrade or upgrade and make or receive an appropriate cash settlement to make up the value difference.

By swapping your property you can save thousands on real estate agent fees and sales commissions. It is perfectly legal and once you have found a property to swap with and agreed the terms, the process is the same as buying and selling. You will still need a lawyer to draw up the paperwork and may still be liable to various taxes and duties.

Make your dream of living in the sun a reality, or maybe you always wanted a smallholding, or a place in France, Spain, Eastern Europe, Florida.....check out some of the listings below.

Partly renovated house close to Yambol, Bulgaria with 1090sqm of land and outbuildings to swap for something in Northern France - will swap for land or a ruin.

A large 11 room, 330sqm property built in 1997 and 10km north of Shabla, near the Bulgarian-Romanian border. Recently renovated and only 200 metres from the sea. To swap for any residential property in England or Wales.

Two bed open plan restored log farmhouse on one acre, private boat launch ,four dock spaces in fishing village in Florida. To swap for a house in Ireland.

Large house split into two one bed apartments, large plot and large barn to swap for something in Western Europe.

Visit http://www.permanentpropertyexchange.com

New York Times Feature

2009-04-29T17:05:00.002+03:00

An article about my forays into the Bulgarian property market has appeared on the New York Times 'Raising the Roof' Blog, title One Woman's Bulgarian Nightmare.

The feature focuses mainly on my aborted purchase of an apartment in Bansko, Bulgaria some 5 years ago. Some of the figures and things in the article are not exactly true - can't say I ever remember saying 'I had made every mistake in the book' but still good publicity for my eBook and website.

With Property Prices Down Can You Still Profit?

2009-04-17T12:37:00.002+03:00

With property prices right across Europe and further a field lower than they were a couple of years ago, (see Prices in Bulgaria down to 2007 level) does this mean that anyone needing to sell has to do so at a loss, or could you still break even or maybe manage a small profit from a sale, if you sell in today’s market.

Much depends on what you intend to do with the money received on a sale. And the currency used when you bought and when you sell.

So let’s look at an example. Say you purchased a property in Bulgaria for 15,000 Euros back in 2007 when you were maybe getting 1.40 Euros to the British Pound. The property therefore cost you around ₤10,700. And then if renovation costs were a further 20,000 Euros, or ₤14,200, making a total spend of around 35,000 Euros or ₤25,000.

If you intend to sell the property now and take the money back into the UK, converting it to pounds, then to break even, you could actually list the property for sale at 28,000 Euros, less than the total Euros you spent on it two years ago and not lose anything. List at 35,000 Euros and you stand to make a profit of around ₤7,000.

If you are trying to sell your property in Bulgaria, or another country where transactions tend to happen in Euros, then this is something to keep in mind. And it will allow you to list your property at a lower price and thus attract more potential buyers.

Of course, this scenario does not help the likes of Irish investors or people living outside the UK and not intending to convert the sales proceeds into British pounds. But for most investors, now struggling to off load properties to free up some cash, this is certainly a positive factor and an advantage of the strong Euro.

Bulgarian Home Loans Goes Under

2009-04-17T09:35:00.003+03:00

Another one bites the dust....

I was just going to contact Bulgarian Home Loans about funding for prospective buyers for my Bulgarian property portfolio, but found a message on their website saying:

At 9am on the Friday 13th March the Director of BulgarianHomeLoans.Com Ltd gave instructions for the company to be liquidated.

At 10am BulgarianHomeLoans.Com Ltd ceased trading.

BHL creditors will be notified directly.

All staff have now left BulgarianHomeLoans.Com Ltd.

Bulgarian Home Loans was started in April 2005 and was the UK's first and only Bulgarian mortgage specialist. However, by 2008, Bulgarian banks were becoming more wary about lending to foreigners investing in resorts such as Bansko and Sunny Beach because of over-development. This was the main market for mortgage companies like Bulgarian Home Loans and coupled with the credit crunch has obviously meant that business was no longer there, leading to the mortgage company being liquidated.

Property Prices in Bulgaria Down to 2007 levels

2009-04-15T19:08:00.000+03:00

A recent report suggested that prices for property in Bulgaria had now dropped to the same level as it was back in 2007. There are no official statistics for this and the noticeable drop is simply based on listed selling prices between 2006 and 2007 and the fact that sale transactions have fallen drastically towards the end of 2008 and in the first few months of 2009.

Many are seeing this as a sign that the Bulgarian real estate market has completely collapsed and there is little hope of recovery any time soon. However, is this really the case?

The most significant price reductions are along the Black Sea coast in resorts such as Sunny Beach and Sveti Vlas and in the ski resort of Bansko, in the Pirin mountains. The properties most affected appear to be those in the middle band price range of around 50,000 to 70,000 Euros.

But is this much of a surprise and was a slump in the property market in these resorts not expected way before there was talk of a world recession?

There was (and to some extent still is) so much construction going on in these resorts that a time was bound to come when supply would outstrip demand and so the practice of selling apartments at high prices to willing buyers was bound to come to an end.

Bulgaria became a ‘hot spot’ to buy around 2004 with every magazine and TV program in the UK full of stories about how you could buy a holiday home in the sun or a ski apartment for the price of a car. Developers and agents pushed developments with promises of large increase in values expected, guaranteed rental agreements and discounts to buyers who purchased multiple apartments. Foreigners bought up the apartments in droves, fuelling yet further price increases and more development. Soon apartments were selling in resorts such as Bansko, Sveti Vlas and Golden Sands (near Varna) for close to 1500 Euros/sqm.

Rumours of Bulgaria hosting the winter Olympics, new airports being opened, ski areas being expanded and championship golf courses being built all added to the hype and rush to buy in these emerging resorts.

And the influx of foreign buyers, particularly British to Bulgaria, meant buyers started searching further inland and away from the over crowded and over developed resorts for a rural retreat. A few years ago an old property with a large plot in Bulgaria could be bought for a couple of thousand Euros. For a few thousand more the property could be renovated into a lovely little holiday home.

Over the next three or four years rural property prices increased significantly, around 20 to 30% a year in many areas. Foreign buyers were charmed by the traditional way of life in the Bulgarian villages, the pretty scenery and of course the low prices. Many bought several properties and renovated them for resale. Bulgarians, seeing how interested foreigner buyers were in rural properties that are of no interest to the local market, increased prices and thought nothing of asking the same price for their tumbling down wreck as the British owner was asking for his newly renovated village house. By 2008 it was increasingly difficult to find even an old small property for under 10,000 Euros and those that were cheaper, were usually in very isolated or poor areas of Bulgaria.

Stories soon started to emerge of rip-off builders, poor developments, late completion of apartments and poor rentals. Media coverage of Bulgaria became one horror story after another as British flew out to see their new apartment with sea views only to find that the development had not even started, or that their luxury apartment was actually a hemmed in box, in the middle of a concrete jungle.

It became harder for developers to shift their off plan properties. Many British, disillusioned by problems with rental agreements or disappointed with the massive over development in resorts such as Sunny Beach and Bansko and the associated rising costs of food and drink in these places, were listing their properties for resale. Developers had to reduce their prices to compete in a market where there were thousands of apartments for sale, both new and resale. Before long, the cost per square metre was falling down to well below 1000 Euros.

And in rural areas, foreign buyers were now more wary of dubious real estate agency tactics and with the weakening pound, buyers were taking more time to research their options and view more property for sale.

A fall in prices for property in the over developed and over hyped resorts such as Sunny Beach, Sveti Vlas, Golden Sands, Bansko and Pamporovo was inevitable, regardless of what was happening with the world economy and property market. Building could not simply continue unchallenged and prices could not continue to rise in a country where the average monthly wage is around 300 pounds. Indeed, prices had already started to fall in many areas before the recession really hit.

The Bulgarian property market was well over due a ‘reshuffle’ and for prices to come down to a more realistic level.

Top 5 Tips For Buying Off-Plan

2009-04-11T10:26:00.003+03:00

In August 2004 I entered into a disastrous agreement to purchase an off-plan apartment in Bansko, Bulgaria with Bulgarian Dreams. I encountered numerous problems such as the sales literature being misleading, facilities not being included as thought, no real views from my balcony, late completion and so on. Eventually after around a year of heated correspondence with the developer and a court action with Bulgarian Dreams, I did get the majority of my money back.

I went on to write about my experience in an eBook entitled My Bulgarian Property Nightmare: A Cautionary Tale for Would-be Investors. This ebook is full of useful tips straight from a Brit whose first Bulgarian property experience turned into a nightmare. It allows you to see what can go wrong and avoid the pitfalls as I share the benefit of my experience. In this true account you'll learn what can go wrong, what to do if it does and why Bulgaria is still a great choice for people keen to invest, holiday or live there.

Because of my experiences in working and living in Bulgaria I still receive emails on a weekly basis asking for help and advice with regard to off plan purchases in Bulgaria that have gone wrong.

Below you will find my top 5 tips for ensuring an off-plan purchase proceeds as smoothly as possible.

1. DO NOT RELY ON SALES LITERATURE ALONE – There is no substitute for traveling to the proposed development site yourself, taking a good look around the area and seeing what other developments are on offer. You may just find that the development you thought was only 30m from the beach is more like 300m, or the stunning ocean views are actually little more than a glimpse of the sea through the surrounding high rises. Do not simply believe everything you read on the agent’s website and in the glossy brochures or sales packs.

2. DO YOUR RESEARCH – Visit the most popular forums online for Bulgaria, off plan purchases, buying abroad etc (a list can be found under forums at http://www.thetravelbug.org) and search for posts about the particular agent, developer and development. If more people had done this over the last couple of years before buying through agents like Bulgarian Dreams, there would be less people now left high and dry with no apartment and no sign of their money.

3. INSTRUCT A LAWYER BEFORE YOU SIGN ANYTHING – Even if you are sure you have found the perfect off-plan apartment and are keen to get things moving and secure the property, do NOT sign anything until you have had your own lawyer go over the contract with a fine tooth comb. Make sure the contract is clear and unequivocal on points such as completion date and what completion means, what is included in purchase price, when instalments are due and so on. Ensure there is no room for confusion on your part of the developers or agent’s part. One clause to pay particular attention to is the late completion penalty clause – ensure that this covers your interests and does not allow the developer to wriggle out of penalties on the basis of delays being caused by poor management of the development.

4. GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING – While this may be easier said than done, try and ensure anything agreed outside the contract is put down in writing and signed by both parties. If changes are made to the layout of your apartment or when payments are due, make sure such agreements are in black and white and signed so the developer cannot back out of agreed changes, or it at least makes it harder to do so.

5. MAKE REGULAR INSPECTION TRIPS – Do ensure you make time and budget for regular inspection trips to check on progress. You should, if possible, ensure you go and inspect the apartment before each and every instalment is due and particularly before the final payment is due. Ensure you are happy with the standard of the work and quality of the finish before you hand over payment.

For more help and advice please visit http://www.thetravelbug.org

Live Telephone Advice Over Skype

2009-04-09T11:32:00.002+03:00

I have signed up for Skype's new Prime Beta Services to allow me to advice and talk to people about Bulgarian property and all related topics over Skype and charge a small amount of money for it. Of course the first few minutes while we see if I can help you in anyway and what the actual problem is will be free.

This will be much easier than asking people to send a small amount of money for me to research and advice them on off plan difficulties etc, which I have done in the past. And it means (so long as I am online) you can reach me straight away.

You will need to have a funded skype account but this is easy to do via paypal or credit card.

Portfolios for Sale

2009-04-08T10:17:00.002+03:00

I have 2 property portfolios for sale:

1) The first includes my personal luxury, new 3 bed house as well as several other renovated and unrenovated properties. The property portfolio would be an ideal purchase for someone looking to relocate to sunnier climates and run a holiday letting business. It includes a luxury, 3 bedroom house with outside BBQ area and newly landscaped gardens, 3 further renovated properties in the same village, one of which is already furnished and used as a holiday let, a partly renovated villa suitable for longer term lets to those needing a base in Bulgaria while they find their own property, another villa close to the city which is currently let out on a long term agreement (to be honoured by buyer), five unrenovated older houses and 2 plots of land suitable for building on.

I am looking for offers of around 450,000 Euros (valued at about 500,000 Euros)for the whole portfolio, complete with Bulgarian company, required as a non-Bulgarian for owning land.

2) 9 Bulgarian Properties Including one Fully Renovated House, 2 Building Plots and 6 Houses for Renovation

An amazing chance to own a whole portfolio of rural properties in Bulgaria for less than the price of a one bed flat in many towns across the UK. Valued at around 137,500 Euros (or about 130,000 GBP), buying all these properties in one go gives you a massive discount, as well as saving on company set up costs (600 Euros) and legal transfer costs. You will simply become the new share owner and manager of an already established Bulgarian company with all these properties as assets.
All these properties are close to the town of Chirpan and between the cities of Plovdiv and Stara Zagora. There are many other British in the area, either living permanently or having holiday homes. It is a pretty and popular area and so these make great investment properties for you to either sell on individually, renovate and sell on for a good profit or hold on to as a retirement fund.

Offers around 110,000 Euros

Property Exchange Service

2009-03-23T10:03:00.003+02:00

With the recent down turn in the world economy and the strong Euro, as well as other factors, the housing market pretty much everywhere has stalled. This has left many in Bulgaria (and other countries) unable to sell their properties. I have therefore decided to offer a property exchange service.

I am aware that there are a number of people that would like to leave Bulgaria but cannot now afford anything back in the UK, or maybe they want to move to France or Spain. On the other hand there are people in the UK who would welcome the opportunity to move abroad, to sunnier climates, live in the countryside etc but as selling property is very difficult at the moment anyway, they can't sell their house in the UK to release the cash so swapping their house in the UK for a house in Bulgaria might be a good option. And the person owning the house in Bulgaria gets back on the property market in the UK (or which ever country they choose). Of course ideally properties being swapped should be of an equal value (unless either party happy otherwise) and it might be that a cash sum might need to be given to equate values.

Within Bulgaria: There are many people that bought 2 or 3 (or more) apartments on rural properties within one area, with the idea of maybe either renovating an older property and selling on, or to sell or rent out one apartment while living in another. Or maybe they have an apartment on the coast that they hardly ever use, or one in a ski resort that sits empty. My idea would be that maybe someone who had 2 apartments on the coast, might like to swap one for an apartment in a ski resort, or someone that had bought a rural property in one part of the country might prefer to swap for a house or plot of land in a different area. Or maybe someone just wants to move from the north to the south, or countryside to town.

Example of properties currently listed:

A small, old house for renovation near Kazanlak for exchange for something Veliko Turnovo way

Other Countries: Other people have given Bulgaria a fair try but now for one reason or another wish to leave but are unable to sell their property in Bulgaria so an option would be for them to swap it for a house in another country, be it the UK, France, Spain or anywhere else. It would be up to the two parties to agree on the exact details of the swap - whether cash was to be given to equal the value etc.

Properties listed for exchange:

3 old rural properties in Central Bulgaria for exchange for something in SW France or North UK or Scotland.

Partly renovated house for exchange for anything in Northern or Central France

For Vehicles, goods etc: Some people have small rural houses or plots and would like to exchange these for say a car, or a boat or camper van etc.

I will allow free listings on the forum.

For listings featured on the main site, there will be a 50 Euro fee per listing. For this your exchange listing will be on the appropriate page and details will also be emailed to all TheTravelBug mailing list (about 400 people). I will be promoting the site and the exchange listings on various other websites and also taking out paid advertising in various places.

What is a Smallholding....

2008-09-15T10:43:00.000+03:00

I often get enquiries from people looking to leave the UK and set up a smallholding in Bulgaria. They want a property with several acres, outbuildings, no neighbours etc....

However, a typcial smallholding as you would get in the UK - your nice cottage with maybe 5 acres and a few barns, simply does not exist in Bulgaria. Or is very rare.

Here in the villages, nearly everybody is a 'smallholder'. Each family has their house, usually set in around 1000 sqm of land and several small barns, lean to sheds etc. They each keep 3 or 4 sheep, a few chickens, maybe the odd cow and goat....

Each morning the cows, sheep and goats are let out of the yard and are collected by the local shepherd, who takes all the village animals outside the village onto common grazing where they roam for the day, watched over by the shepherd and two or three dogs. Should danger approach then the sheep do not run from dogs as they do in the UK, but all crowd behind the dogs, which circle the sheep and keep the predator away. In some areas, the dogs live constantly with the sheep and wear studded collars to ward off attacks by wolves!

However, things are slowly changing and with new EU regulations banning the keeping of livestock within village boundaries, soon this way of life may disappear. But for now it is lovely to see the sheep wandering slowly home at the end of the day, watch the donkeys pull huge loads of hay stacked on carts from the fields....

So if you are looking for a smallholding in Bulgaria, please keep in mind that finding a property with over an acre (4000sqm) is extremely difficult. But finding a lovely house (but requiring serious renovation) with 2,000 to 3,000sqm and many outbuildings is no problem and should set you back no more than 15,000 to 20,000 Euros.

Tierschutz Mission Dog Rescue Burgas

2008-09-09T13:38:00.002+03:00

I initially heard of this rescue centre from a friend of a friend back in November 2007 when I was desperate to re-home 2 of the 4 puppies from a street dog I had taken in. I took the dogs, met the lady (Margarita) who runs the place and saw the centre, made a donation and left.

In March 2008 I received a phone call to say the 2 pups had been re-homed which I was delighted to here. Margarita told me how desperate they were for funds for food, blankets and medical care.

On 5th September 2008 I visited the office and centre again to meet with the German journalist who has funded the centre from her private savings and donations she can raise back in Germany. I told her of my plans to start fund raising for the rescue centre. To date they have received practically nothing from either Bulgarians of Expats despite local please for funds in the Burgas area.

I have set up a webpage at Tierschutz Mission to help raise funds and awareness.

Irakli Nature Reserve - Beauty Spot or Crime Spot

2008-07-24T13:54:00.002+03:00

A couple of weeks ago we planned to go camping at the Nature Reserve/Eco sport - Irakli, situated just past Banya and before Obzor. We arrived and followed the track to the beach, where there were several cars, a cafe and fair few people.

Looking for the camping area we drove further along dirt tracks until we came to a small parking area where there were 4 or 5 other cars. However, having left the car for 15 minutes to find a suitable place to camp, we came back to find window smashed and my bag had been stolen with all documents, passport etc....The car was parked with along 5 others and people were coming and going from beach all the time so looks like someone watched us leave and ensured we were a safe distance away while someone else broke in quickly and did a runner.

Police 'helpfully' said that there had been 20 to 30 such breakins over last year or two and possibly mafia related in that mafia connected developers want to build there and so they are trying to put people off going camping etc.

Personally the place is nothing special anyway and the campers had ruined it with rubbish everywhere etc. Alright beach but not much else.

Still waiting for police report so I can get a new passport. First one they issued failed to mention my bag at all and has now taken several phone calls and over a week to get them to send new one.

What the heck is this???

2008-05-23T19:53:00.003+03:00

Just look at what I found in the dog's bowl. Horrid isn't it? Not sure of the name of the thing but apparently eats all your plants. So this little sucker got tossed over the wall.

And on with ant saga......

The Raid just keeps on getting them. I went back to check on one room in another property that had got ants sneaking in through a hole. I blasted them all with Raid a couple of weeks ago and hoovered up the hundreds of dead black bodies. Yesterday I discover hundreds more apparently dead ants. Only when I started to hoover them up, all of a sudden the hoover packed in and when I opened it up, loads of nasty, live ants tumbled out. Guess they are very good at pretending to be dead and having a whirl around a vacuum cleaner brings them back to life. So another dose of Raid for both room and hoover.

Ants - amazing creatures but very annoying

2008-05-18T10:32:00.003+03:00

While ants are amazingly organised creatures, this level of organization can cause havock in the garden. The above photo was taken of a huge an colony on a tree branch in my garden. This army got blasted with RAID ant killer as the little buggers kept eating my cucumber seedlings.

And I discovered a large mound of grass seed by an ants nest in one of my other properties. The ants had obviously spent many days collecting seeds and transporting them back to their nest. Unfortunately for them, I have since swept up all my
removed grass seed and placed back on the garden.

This year there seems a massive amount of ants around and there are ant holes everywhere you look in the ground.

Kotel & Jeravna

2008-05-12T11:55:00.003+03:00

The other weekend we decided to head up Kotel way. We left Stara Zagora around 5pm and headed towards Sliven in search of the 'Blue Rocks' in the mountains behind. After a couple of hours we reached Karandila, an old communist resort area high in the mountains. There were several old and run down hostels but apart from some stunning views across the valley below, not much else to commend it. And the rocks were basely blue, more a silver grey, but then we did not go to the main formations as daylight was running short.

We headed on north up and over the mountain on a very windy road until we came over the other side and into the Kotel region. It was just getting dark when we reached Kotel. As it is known as a tourist destination due to the National Revival style wooden houses, we expected there to be any lovely traditional hotels to choose from. But not so....there were basically 2 - a more modern one in the centre and an older style one on the edge of the village. Only the more modern (and more expensive at 60 levs a night for a room) one had space and so we booked in there.

The next day we went to explore the village. There is a small old part with quite a few wooden cladded traditional houses and 2 or 3 museum houses. We visited one but to be honest when you have seen one, you have seen them all, so we headed to the Museum of Nature and Science, which houses a large collection of local and international 'stuffed' wildlife and was fairly interesting.

At around lunchtime we headed back in the Sliven direction but took a slight detour to see the old museum town of Jeravna. And this was worth seeing.

Nestled in the mountains it is very beautiful and nearly all the houses are off the traditional National Revival style. There are several traditional restaurants and many small guest houses. We spent a lovely few hours wandering around, visiting a museum house or two (famous Bulgarian writers/artists etc), had a lovely meal in the sun and then headed back over to Stara Zagora.

Private Sales - Some interesting offers

2008-04-26T16:00:00.002+03:00

Here are a few private sales listing - all different: a new build shell near Varna for completion, a very cheap little house Rousse way and a magnificent old house in need of some TLC.

Shell For Sale in Popular Village 30 Mins from Varna

This project was begun by an English lady in the summer of 2006. She purchased the plot of land, which is 1,100 sqm and gained all relevant planning permissions to build a good size bungalow of 155sqm.

It is at the edge of the village and occupies a corner plot. The village is very popular with British and several British families live there. It is only 30 minutes from Varna and the airport and 20 minutes from the beach.

Work started to build the house in June 2006 and it was done to shell stage with internal and external walls and the roof is 80% tiled.

For anyone looking for a project to finish for a lovely holiday home, close to the sea and Varna city, then this is a good value property.

I can help you source good quality builders to finish the job and have a colleague who can over see and project manage the whole thing for you.

Price: 44,000 Euros (including commission)

Small Cottage on Edge of Bistrentsi Village, Rousse area

Sweet cottage on the edge of the village of Bistrentsi, close to Byala and not far from the northern Bulgarian city of Rousse.

The cottage is in attractive, rolling countryside with only one near neighbour. There are 2 rooms on the first floor and a small room which would be ideal for a bathroom. There is the possibility of building living accommodation and a kitchen in the 2 room basement. Both water and electricity are connected to the property. There is a large plot of land (1480 metres square) and there are already productive grape vines and strawberries in the garden in front of the house.

This cottage, with renovations, will make an ideal summer holiday retreat from the stress and hurry of western European life.

The price reflects the fact that there is renovation to be carried out.

Price: 6,000 Euros (plus commission)

Fantastic Character Property For Renovation with Stunning Views

In its time this was the best house in the village but has not been abandoned for many years and fallen into rack and ruin, yet with some TLC and of course money, this would make a magnificent, imposing family home.

There are 6 rooms covering 130sqm and a plot of 1000sqm with lovely views to the hills and village. Accessed by a good, gravel track, it is 20km from Lovech in the village of Katunec.

It requires all new windows and doors, roof repairs, new wiring and plumbing, septic tank, internal and external plastering so is not a project to be undertaken lightly but it is cheap for the size of property and plot and once renovated, would be simply fantastic.

I have never personally seen this house but it belongs to a friend who inherited it from his grandfather and is now looking to sell it.

Price: 6,000 Euros (including commission) or nearest offer

So Lada's Just Go & Go Do They???

2008-02-19T10:47:00.002+02:00

Well from what I had been told Lada's just kept going and going for years and years. Yes they may rattle, struggle to get above 80 km/hr and be about as luxurious as a tank but they were supposed to be reliable!

But not mine.....

Only a year after buying it something went wrong with the gear box and it kept slipping out of gear. An oil change seemed to sort out the problem but of course the oil was not under guarantee.

Then yesterday I came back to the car in the centre of town to find that that battery was completely dead. I left it an hour and went for lunch. When I came back the lights and radio would work but it just ticked over loudly and would not actually start.

So I had to be taken by tow truck to a garage (50 Levs) and then be told that the battery was knackered and so I needed a new one - another 160 levs plus 30 levs fitting.

Of course as is usual in Bulgaria, it was not so simple as just rolling up at a garage, getting a new battery fitted and off you go. No....I had to go with the mechanic to the shop, buy a battery, come back, have it fitted, drive to the other side of the city to get the battery guarantee book stamped (yes this one actually comes with a guarantee as original one, even though only 15 months old did not!) and then drive back to garage to pay mechanic.

Three hours later my Lada is finally working again but for a new car, it has cost me a lot of time and money and I am sure there is more to come at the next service as the hand brake light on the dashboard never goes off and at low speeds the car makes an awful whining noise.

Rachel

First BBQ of 2008

2008-02-08T14:26:00.000+02:00

Last weekend we headed up to Magleesh to the river and after leaving the car close to the first small waterfall, we trekked up the side of the river for 10 to 15 minutes, crossing a rather precarious old wooden bridge. We came across a small clearing where there was a natural spring for drinking water and decided to set up the BBQ here.

The area is incredibly beautiful and would be an ideal place to go in the summer to camp, have BBQs, paddle in the river and swim in the natural pools. Sheer rock faces rise up at either side of the river.

There is another larger waterfall a few kilometres further up the river. But we decided to leave that for another exploration trip! Once the sun went behind the mountains it started to get decidedly chilly so we packed up, drank the last of the beer and headed home.

Snow, Snow & More Snow

2008-01-03T10:26:00.000+02:00

Woke up yesterday morning to blizzard conditions and a foot of snow. It carried on snowing heavily all day, leaving a white, winter wonderland.

Whilst the older dogs adored playing in the snow and ran around like fools, jumping in and out of snow drifts and playing with balls of ice and snow, little bobby was not impressed at all and so I took pity on him and kept in him inside for the day and night. He had a bath and then curled up under the table by the fire.

This morning the snow had stopped and there were blue skies. The wind over night had whipped the snow into strange shapes over the terrace railings:

New Year at Uzana

2008-01-02T20:20:00.000+02:00

We spent New Year's eve at an old hostel in Uzana. A strange place really. Lots of old hostels and the odd hotel and each has a tiny drag lift by it. No-one really manning the lifts and turned on at sporadic times.

The hostel was unrenovated with basic bathrooms and awful metal beds. But it was warm and there were several bbqs provided to cook on as well as a number of pechcas.

It had put a little snow down over night and the next day we had to complete de-ice the Lada before we could set off down the icey, snowy road to Gabrovo and over Shipka pass back home. It was snowing heavily as we went over the Balkans but by the time we hot Kazanlak had turned to rain.

How Could I Resist?

2007-12-27T14:28:00.000+02:00

Driving home this morning, I spotted a little ball of fluff on the side of the road. I stopped the car a little further along and walked back to where a tiny, skinny puppy was wandering around, looking very lost and cold. He came straight to me and sat down for a fuss. His little tailed wagged and he seemed so happy to receive a little attention.

Anyway, there was no way I could leave him there then, with the thought he may get run over or starve or freeze. So I put him in the car and brought him home. He was invested with fleas so he got covered in flea powder and had a packet of cat food to eat, which he wolfed down.

After his first proper meal in a while

Introduced to Bessy the cat

Then I popped him outside and carefully introduced him through wire mesh to my other 4 dogs. Then put a blanket down for him in a spare pen and left him to sleep and settle down.

Not sure what I will do with him but he is adorable. Will have to take him to vets to get checked out.

Have only just managed to send two other rescue puppies to a centre for re-homing to try and reduce the number of pets I have and now I have added another to the brood.

Buzludzha Local Skiing

2007-12-21T20:29:00.001+02:00

Well after first dump of snow we headed up the mountain to Buzludzha and the small ski area there, just a 20 minute drive from Kazanlak. Surprisingly the renovated 2 star hotel was completely full and the other hotel was a little out the way so we decided to try the hostel, right at the base of the one working poma lift. The area does not fully open until the 23rd December and then there are a couple of longer poma runs, and a couple of nursery slopes.

The cost was 10 levs a day for ski and boot hire and the equipment was fairly new and in good condition and the skis were all set up properly. The lift was then 12 levs a day. It became quite busy on the Sunday afternoon and as the piste is not groomed at all it did become a little scraped off and bumpy as the day went on.

Only a very small ski area but great for a day or weekend up in the mountain.

Third Renovation Nearly Finished

2007-10-29T13:51:00.000+02:00

Well my third renovation is nearly completed. It has been a quick project started in around August so only 3 months to completely renovate and refurnish an old mud brick house. It is now a lovely 2 bed house with downstairs toilet and main bathroom upstairs and then separate guest annex that sleeps a further two.

To give an idea of costs, property cost me close to 7,000 Euros and have spent around 40,000 Euros on renovations. So with all fees, kitchen and furniture etc will be about 50,000 Euros for lovely 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom house.

Will soon start on fourth and final project for now which is a large extension and modernisation of a villa just over the road from where I live. Waiting on municipality to approve plans and can then make a start.