keep your eyes wide open !!

[rabarbaro]

I'm buying an apartment in Sozopol, ww.saint-thomasbg.com.
I've faced so many problems it's even unthinkable....last but not least
I have to install furniture, I did all my best to respect mad deadline and today.
when the furniture seller went in the complex ( they agreed a date with the building society ) nobody was there to open the door...they didn't let
them enter with the truck ( it's still in construction ),they had to carry the furniture for 500 mts ( when you can arrive in the front door with the truck ) and nodoby wanted to open the door....
Just crazy ! Never ever do this thing again...there is always something to learn ! At least I try to advice everybody to buy houses near where you live, not so far away....

 

[runchev]

I'm buying an apartment in Sozopol, ww.saint-thomasbg.com.
I've faced so many problems it's even unthinkable....last but not least
I have to install furniture, I did all my best to respect mad deadline and today.
when the furniture seller went in the complex ( they agreed a date with the building society ) nobody was there to open the door...they didn't let
them enter with the truck ( it's still in construction ),they had to carry the furniture for 500 mts ( when you can arrive in the front door with the truck ) and nodoby wanted to open the door....
Just crazy ! Never ever do this thing again...there is always something to learn ! At least I try to advice everybody to buy houses near where you live, not so far away....

You can write a book about it

Maybe u just have a bad luck...

 

[thetravelbug]

not unusual to have to install furniture. Why was there a deadline for furniture or am I completely off track??? Think furniture delivery needed to have been agreed with construction workers/developers - not building society.

 

[rabarbaro]

surely is not unusual...

not unusual to have to install furniture. Why was there a deadline for furniture or am I completely off track??? Think furniture delivery needed to have been agreed with construction workers/developers - not building society.

Sure, you are right, the problem is that after having agreed, on the phone and in written, when the seller arrived to install the furniture they couldn- t enter as nodoby had the keys and the person we talked to was not there and the cell off.
There was a deadline, I don-t know why, and at the date of the deadline that apartment as not ready at all, even floor was missing.
When finally apartment was ready ( more or less as there are a lot of defects ) and we agreed with the person who is in charge ( in my case builder society, management company, developers and so on are all the same society.... ) we had that problem.

That-s it. Tons and tons of problems, not yet fully solved. It-s not easy to summarize in few lines 2 years of headache....

Daniela

 

[rabarbaro]

And when I wrote that it-s better to buy something near where you live I meant it...at least you can check things and so on.
It has been stupid to buy in Bulgaria, not being a bulgarian !

 

[thetravelbug]

It is not stupid to buy in Bulgaria if you are not Bulgarian but you do need to do your research and ensure you have independent legal advice and a good agent working for you, especially if you are not in the country.

St-Thomas is I understand a prestigious development on the cape of Sozopol. I know Bulgarians that own there. I understand the development is around ready for opening.

 

[flatron]

Buying BG property: 5easy steps

Buying BG property: 5easy steps
1. Make a choice. 4-5 viewings is good, more will confuse you. If you are buying an apartment viewings will take 4-5hours. For a plot or a house it may take 1-2 days. Tell the agent your wishes and budget and help him select what is best for you. An hour talking with the agent can save you one day of driving.
2. Put a reservation money to take the desired property OFF market (usually 1-3 000Euros reserves you 3-4 weeks). This will give you time to put the money together if you are not ready.
3. Read and sign the preliminary contract. It usually says that the contract is effective only if an initial paydown is made, so there is risk in signing it on this stage.
4. Open a local bank account and give a power to someone to operate it (your agent, developer or lawyer). It costs nothing, takes 30 minutes and will be essential after the down payment. This is a cash country so with drawing and paying cash from your account will save you money (mostly VAT). The power of attorney has to be signed in Bulgaria.
5. Open up the sparkling wine.
Hint: Don’t use UK lawyers. They do the checks thru their BG partners anyway but you pay UK service rates and wait more. Use BG lawyers on a fixed price-they will do the work in one week for 100-200 Euros. The highest price of local lawyers checks on property contracts is 500Euros when in UK that’s may be the lowest.
Tax Tip: In Bulgaria you can resale first property after 3 years with no capital gain tax. Second or next-after 5 years with no tax.

 

[Jain and Chris]

Morning Flatron

I'm not sure I'd agree with you on some of your points.
2. Reservation deposit - I don't consider it ethical for a Bulgarian or British real estate agent to ask you for such a fee before you have got enough information and documents about the property. Sometimes these monies are substantial and non-refundable and are paid at too early a stage. They in effect represent the price for selling you the information you should be given anyway.
3. Prelim contracts - Make sure you have any clauses inserted here which you need to protect you. Do not sign anything without your own independent lawyer and a registered translator to ensure you understand everything.
4. It may be that you give PoA to the agent or developer over your bank account but my strong advice would be to give PoA to your own lawyer who is acting in your sole interests.
Beware of paying cash for things - you usually don't get a receipt when doing this, which you may need later when re-selling to reduce any tax burden!
5. Open the champagne when you have finalised the deal and the notary deeds are signed!

Tax : You may resell one property in Bulgaria during a year without paying capital gains tax in Bulgaria, providing you own the property in your own name (apartment as an example). However, if you are resident overseas, you will still be liable to cgt in your own country.
If you resell your property in Bulgaria and it is owned through the vehicle of a company, then you will pay 10% corporation tax in Bulgaria on any profit (less allowable expenses). Again, the cgt situation in your country of residence needs to be considered (less the tax paid in Bulgaria if there is a reciprocal tax agreement)

All the best

 

[LOLYPOP]

power of attorney - only in Bulgaria???

4. .. The power of attorney has to be signed in Bulgaria..........


4. It may be that you give PoA to the agent or developer over your bank account but my strong advice would be to give PoA to your own lawyer who is acting in your sole interests.
Beware of paying cash for things - you usually don't get a receipt when doing this, which you may need later when re-selling to reduce any tax burden!


Hello everybody!
I am new to this forum and perhaps should be first introducing myself in another section, however, it happened to be......... I am also buying in Bansko, development Paradiso Verde. Anybody else?

However, since I bought in a real estate exibition under general Bulgaria's pre-EU accession price increase campain... and my purpose was solely investment, I am now trying to figure if all this registration thing can be done actually not visiting Bulgaria at all?

Equally, the sales agent companies advised attorney said the registration would cost 4% of property price. Hm........ wasn't it that smth like 3% before?? And he said his services would cost 700 Eur. Another hm....

It is quite difficult to find actual information about costs etc. as real estate sales agent sites I don't believe are up to date or tend to be too general!

Hope to hear from you soon or guidelines where to search for information!

 

[runchev]

4. .. The power of attorney has to be signed in Bulgaria..........


4. It may be that you give PoA to the agent or developer over your bank account but my strong advice would be to give PoA to your own lawyer who is acting in your sole interests.
Beware of paying cash for things - you usually don't get a receipt when doing this, which you may need later when re-selling to reduce any tax burden!


Hello everybody!
I am new to this forum and perhaps should be first introducing myself in another section, however, it happened to be......... I am also buying in Bansko, development Paradiso Verde. Anybody else?

However, since I bought in a real estate exibition under general Bulgaria's pre-EU accession price increase campain... and my purpose was solely investment, I am now trying to figure if all this registration thing can be done actually not visiting Bulgaria at all?

Equally, the sales agent companies advised attorney said the registration would cost 4% of property price. Hm........ wasn't it that smth like 3% before?? And he said his services would cost 700 Eur. Another hm....

It is quite difficult to find actual information about costs etc. as real estate sales agent sites I don't believe are up to date or tend to be too general!

Hope to hear from you soon or guidelines where to search for information!

The notary fees raised up to 3,6 % including VAT.

The solicitor would normally ask for 300-350 EUr fro writing down the title deed and checking all documents.
Amount over 400 EUR is a rip off.

 

[LOLYPOP]

The solicitor would normally ask for 300-350 EUr fro writing down the title deed and checking all documents. Amount over 400 EUR is a rip off.

Thanks for an answer!

However, I am looking to find out if it is possible to do all the paperwork not visiting Bulgaria at all.
Aparently, the price quoted of 700 Eur, was the one if I am not visiting Bulgaria, but do it with power of atorney from different country.
Still cannot decide which idea I like better - visiting Bulgaria / doing it from distance..

L.

 

[runchev]

The solicitor would normally ask for 300-350 EUr fro writing down the title deed and checking all documents. Amount over 400 EUR is a rip off.

Thanks for an answer!

However, I am looking to find out if it is possible to do all the paperwork not visiting Bulgaria at all.
Aparently, the price quoted of 700 Eur, was the one if I am not visiting Bulgaria, but do it with power of atorney from different country.
Still cannot decide which idea I like better - visiting Bulgaria / doing it from distance..

L.

Then you just need to go to the Bulgarian embassy and sign and send an appostile( I can not check the spelling now),but it should work also.

 

[Jain and Chris]

Yes, of course you can do it without being in Bulgaria. Naturally, this will cost you a bit more than if you were able to attend the signature on the deeds. You do need to give PoA with an apostille if you have not already signed the PoA in Bulgaria personally.

By the time you have paid your air fare plus accommodation, any extra you save will be taken up with those costs.

Question if I may: who are you thinking of giving PoA to? if you are not going to be here yourself for the final signature.

Also, people on here are saying 400 euros plus is a "rip-off", well I would say, it depends upon what you ask of them to do; plus how much you trust them to act on your behalf... better safe than sorry if you trust a developers or agents lawyer!

All the best, J

 

[LOLYPOP]

Ok, thanks for an advice.
Can you suggest any lawyer whom you personally would trust? (being in Bulgaria as it looks like I am doing a trip in November to Bansko)

L.

 

[Jain and Chris]

As you will know, we are independent publishers so are unable to recommend any one person above another as we do not necessarily have any personal experience of them.

The law firm who writes for Quest Bulgaria magazine has a very good reputation amongst our readers and subscribers and on many other forums, so I think it might be worth contacting her? The company is GPNG law firm in Sofia and one of their lawyers who deals with our readers is Asja Manjukova. Her email is [email protected]

Hope this will help you. If you need anything else, just ask

 

[LOLYPOP]

The notary fees raised up to 3,6 % including VAT.

The solicitor would normally ask for 300-350 EUr fro writing down the title deed and checking all documents.
Amount over 400 EUR is a rip off.

AND WHERE TO GET A SOLICITOR WHO WOULD CHARGE NOT MORE THAN THAT? (for property registration in Banso in middle of November) Any advice appreciated!

 

[thetravelbug]

I can possibly help with good lawyer, based in Sofia but dealing with lots of complexes in Bansko.

 

[mdacruz1]

Hi

Does anyone know who I can I speak to about reselling my apartment in Perun Lodge, paid the deposit and reservation fee, but would like to sell and a huge discount

Cheers