Bulgaria, Is This The Worlds Next Property Hotspot?

For a whole number of reasons, foreign investment capital at the moment is streaming into Bulgaria with a vengeance and one of the prime reasons for this influx of Western capital are the huge gains to be made in the Bulgarian property market.At present in Bulgaria's capital Sofia, in the residential sector remains the most dynamic segment in the real estate market. Currently demand is outstripping supply of about course is driving the market.It would appear that to 2-3 bedroom apartments?account for most of the current inventory and at the moment sales prices have stabilized since the rapid growth in early 2006. The increase in 2600 funnily enough was only marginal compared to the rises of previous years.The middle segment of the market is the most active with two bedroom apartments in highest demand whilst in the upper end of the market for affluent buyers the demand is for houses or three bedroom apartments.Rental levels remained stable in the first six months of 2006 but are expected to see this increase also.In the last 12 months the industrial real estate segment has actually become one of the most attractive areas in Bulgaria and considerable investment has take place in Sofia, the capital and other key areas as well.The one thing to note possibly is that the majority of major projects are for more large industrial warehouse units. This would indicate that developers are increasingly turning their attention industrial and logistics end of the market. However the other thing to note is that the majority of the new supply is taken up by owner occupiers.One of the areas of real estate that has taken quite a few people by surprise has actually been in the holiday rental market. The supply of holiday homes in the mountain region of Bulgaria has seen an amazing 152% increase in 2006 over 2005. The total number homes in this area has grown to in excess of 12,000 units by the end of June 2006 compared to just under 5000 units in June 2005.The coastal region is also booming in Bulgaria and increases in supply of over 6000 units reflects a 37% growth from June 2005 to June 2006. Currently more than 22,500 units are in various stages of preparation and development.It would appear as in other areas that multiple factors are influencing the price levels including location, quality of the resort and scope of the available amenities.There is no doubt that the economic growth in Bulgaria is a deciding factor in all of this and Bulgaria has reported quite considerable growth since it was admitted to the European Union in January 2007. Tourism has always been a massive industry and is still booming and government has pledged major investment to ensure that the expansion of tourism industry continues.