Living in Bulgaria

Generally Bulgaria is a safe place. I live in a village 50KMS from Varna. It is safe, peaceful and cheap. The centre of Varna seems to be the most expensive place in Bulgaria, it's fully, bet the capital Sofia, is much cheaper. What you need to decide first is, do you want to want to be in a village of town? Inland, seaside, or mountain? I can help with all you will need, finding a place to live, English speaking lawyer and accountant, UK TV, UK telephone numbers, insurance services and much more. You can take the benefit of my experience and not get tucked up. There are more sharks on land than in the sea.

Hi I moved here from Scotland 6 months ago and so far am enjoying it. But I will say the lifestyle here takes a bit of getting used to, nothing happens fast here lol. I would say property in the Varna area can be comparatively expensive as it's a holiday resort area but there are many great villages inland as well. Depends on the lifestyle you expect. Take care when looking at houses and research the village/town amenities as well some villages have problems with gypsies for example,  Also check Internet and B/band availability etc. The mechanics of buying here can be quite daunting but worth the effort. So don't let any of this put you off, I'm trying to tell it as I find it and I'm still here lol
Happy to communicate with any questions you have if I can help at all. PM me here and I'll send my e mail adress
Good luck!

I didn't want to mention the gypsys, as i did not want to me marked as a racist. But yes gypsys can be an issue. Also never buy a house at the end of a village. Do check what the Internet is like before making an offer on a property. Some parts of Bulgaria, like VT have great fibre with 100MB, some places the  internet, is abysmal. Your best bet is to come for a few weeks and hire a car. Any questions just ask.

Thanks to everyone, for your replies. All very helpful. Just a question, why not at end of village, poss very obvious when someone tells me.
As for the gypsies, where are they most prevalent.

There was a section in the last census which broke down population by ethnic origin and that is on one of the government websites broken down by municipality.

I too would love to hear why one should not buy at the end of a village

I've heard the end of village opinion as well. I think it may be because at the end of the village the house is more likely to be broken into where there are fewer neighbours. As most houses here come with a fair bit of land attached they would be more isolated.
On the other point of where gypsies are most prevalent,  I think it is just a few villages which have a problem in this way so don't let it be a great issue. I only highlighted it so you could be aware and raise it as a question with your estate agent or better yet with the locals in the village where you are viewing. The village where I live for example has no such problems and I'm sure most posters here would say the same

Thanks again, do you know where I can get info on the census, no doubt I will be back with  more questions. Speak soon.

Bulgaria really a good place for stay.

Hello! Bulgaria is a lovely and safe place to stay for a holiday, as well as for permanent living. I recommend the Veliko Tarnovo area as it is the most beautiful and peaceful area with everything one needs close by The prices are way lower than for example Sofia/Varna/Burgas and life has less pressure! I don't know what your budget is but I do know some very interesting houses in that area for around 25.000/20.000 Euro (150m2, 2000m2 garden with minor renovationwork) If someone has any questions about (life in) the Veliko Tarnovo area, please feel free to ask. Greetings, Alexander (Dutch from origine)

Hi Alex,
I was looking at Butovo for living then I notices a railway line. Doesn't this kind of shatter the peaceful living you speak of?

Nice sarcasm, you probably know what I mean .. (don't you have anything better to do?)

I've lived now in the VT area for 7 months and have yet to see a train! As you say Alex it is quiet and peaceful

Where's the sarcasm; am I wrong, is there no railway line in  Butovo? If I am correct then what I asked was an entirely serious and reasonable response to your offer of assistance in the Verliko Ternova area as I do not know it well and perhaps the line is abandoned or perhaps it is a very busy freight line: I hoped you might know but then perhaps you do not know that village.

It is a lovely and quiet area indeed Ron, nice to hear you are enjoying yourself in Bulgaria! As for our Wanderer.. Read back your first post and you might get it .. I am here to help and make (nice) conversations with people (also wanting a nice conversation). Your tone shatters my will to answer seriously to such questions filled with negativity. If you were serious, and looking for a house .. I would advise you not to buy in that area and move a bit to the south/south-east of Veliko Tarnovo as the area of the village you are talking about is more flat, more "gypsy" and more populated. Small villages in the area of Elena, Tryavna, Dryanovo and Gabrovo would be a better option! If your question about the railroad was in fact a question you wanted to be answered, you would have put it in an other way ..

frednlass wrote:

Thanks again, do you know where I can get info on the census, no doubt I will be back with  more questions. Speak soon.

The most readable report is http://www.nsi.bg/census2011/PDOCS2/Cen … nal_en.pdf but it only provides an analysis by region. Since more than half the Roma population live in urban areas the concentration in villages where there is a large town in the region is then likely small.

For the most detailed analysis and the actual numbers  http://www.nsi.bg/census2011/
and fir the answer to your specific question have seen other reports and the can all be found using appropriate Google searches.

Thanks for those two sites, I will check them later, I have found quite a lot of info from google search, as you rightly suggest, thank you for all your help, I hope to be in a property buy the end of this year, more than likely VT region. No doubt will have more questions before then.
keep on posting, always reading.

If you live there permanently living at the end of a village would not be a big problem in most of the cases, at least not in the villages around VT thatI am familiar with.
Get a fence, save a dog of two's life and learn them bark at strangers passing by.
99.9% of the people with bad intentions will think twice before entering the garden.

If you do not live there permanently (yet), there are other options to be extra safe.
Let people in the village you live in, preferably a neightbour, take care of your house.
Agree on an amount a month/year and on the things that need to be done.

For example, a friend of ours in the village we live in always mowed our grass, repaired the house when needed, turns on the boilers etc, pays the bills and even walks our dogs when we were not there.
This is an older Bulgarian man (speaking English) with a state pension of about 90 Euro's a month.
For them this will be a change in life and it will give you a good and safe feeling when leaving back home.
It won't be that much work for him (and the salaries are low anyway) and he could definately use the money.

If you want to be extra sure, there are enough security companies around Veliko Tarnovo which sell and install the systems. (a good friend taking care of the house, a good door(lock), double glass and big dogs would just do though)

The statistics you mentioned are interesting indeed, they have passed me before somewhere.
I must say that I think that most gypsys are or not registered, or constantly moving around so you need to go the the village and look around to be sure what the exact situation is.

The village we live in includes some permanent gypsys but they are mostly friendly, sometimes asking for work, asking if you need wood or if you can spare 1 or 2 Leva/a sigaret. (if you say yes they are very happy, if you say no they won't do you harm) I give them something one out of 4 times to stay friends but not too good friends if you know what I mean.

My advise is to first visit the villages of interest, take a look and talk to people.
Most people (if they speak English though) will be glad to help you out!

It will surprise you how many foreigners you will meet (at least in the area I live in)
Our village is very small and has people with 12 different nationalities, all living peacefully together with the Bulgarians

AlexBG wrote:

IIf your question about the railroad was in fact a question you wanted to be answered, you would have put it in an other way ..

HAving reviewed my question it seems to me as a native English speaker with some half dozen decades experience in asking questions that it ws  an entirely reasonable way of asking it. If you offer advice and help t is, I suggest, not reasonable to criticise the way in which the advice is requested just because you don't happen to like the content or phrasing of the question.

Most English native speakers with the same experience ask questions in a different way though .. when I ask a question to someone I don't know I was learned to ask it nicely but maybe that's just me ..

Thanks Alex, some very good suggestions there, initially I would only be staying a few weeks at a time, but with the intention of full time residence within a couple of years. I would  hopefully be looking for a property in need of slight renovation, but not to much to stop it being habitable.
Hope to speak again soon

Hi,
I'm from England and looking to buy a property in Bulgaria. Would anyone recommend reliable, fair and honest Estate agents and Law firms? That would be great stuff!

And also what do you think Elhovo, Symelyn and Bourges areas?

Many of Bulgarian houses are with Sceptic tank system, how often it needs maintenance or replacing and the costs?

Hi

Which area did you have in mind? Best dvise it to rent somewhere or book yourself into a hotel for a week or so and drive and visit, get a feel for bulgarian life. We moved there about 8 years ago but have had to come back to the UK for various reasons and caanot wait to go back out there with two young kids. Message me for any information. You can generally tell by the style of houses whether it is gypsy orientated or not.

Bets of luck as its a lovely place

Hi My name is Hassan but, At work I'm called Danny cos I'm look a like Danny Devito. Where is VT? and what are they stand for? I am getting retired soon and with the pension income can not live in UK. So like some of us have to cut corners and live else  for less stress. I need all  the help I can get for buying property and where to buy. I do not want to buy House for many reasons, 1/ I have interests in UK and when want to go just lock door and go without any worries that what happened to my house and in some stages we become old and have no energy to go to garden for gardening and other maintenances, therefore I prefer Apartments/Flats to house or bungalow. I am selling my four bedroom bungalow because had 3 heart attacks in the last 3 years and can not keep it up with it any more. So you unseen friends coming into picture that makes me thrilled for the helps can get. Now my needs:
1- Warmer climate.
2- safe area
3- Near city, town or beach
4- budget is: £40,000
I thank you all for any suggestion/s and helps.
God bless all.
Hassan Taheri

Hello Hassan! (and others) VT stands for Veliko Tarnovo, a lovely city with about a 100.000 inhabitants in the middle of Bulgaria. From April to Oktober the temperatures are between +20 and +40, the winters are quite cold (+10 to -20 but without wind or moisture so it does not feel that cold) If you are interested in this city and the area around it I'll be glad to help you! For £ 40.000 you can buy a lovely appartment and a brand new car, appartments from €20.000 up to €50.000 so you won't have to spend the entire £40.000. Greetings, Alexander

Hi Alex
I really appreciated that.I am warmed up by your words When we come to Bulgaria, We should get together. We will be coming some times in May but, Before we come will intouch. Thanks again for all you do and all of you at Expat.com.

Hassan.

Hi Alex and all in Expat.coms
I think, Have found the place I wanted and is 15KM to west of VT it is relatively big in good order and price wise cheap only EU 26000. Unfortunately can not be there sooner. Hope not to be sold until I view the building and location.
3 bedroom, 2 toilets, Large garage, Barn and other outbuildings too.
see you all.

Regards

Hassan

Hello Hassan! That's nice! I don't want to get your hopes down but most houses for sale are not in the shape that the pictures show. Over the last 2 years I viewed about 10 houses, none of them being in the shape agents said it would be. I advise you to make a list of properties you might like in the same area and view more of them, in that way you can save time and look at different villages (do not move into an area filled with gypsys with lots of houses for sale, there must be a reason why people want to sell their houses) Next to that, try to take down the price with10 to 15% , in many cases agencies leave some room to bargain, even 5% would be nice to save Greetings Alex

Hello again my FRIEND, Alex
As small landlord Have done my homework and just sold the last 2. But, unfortunately I did not make big profits as I was expecting due to slump of financial problems as we all are aware of. The Country we are going to move is completely unknown especially in my age, I have to take my steps very carefully For instance is there any gypsies where you live?
or if they live, In which part of the town they are? Would you advise me to buy small to medium size apartment to let to tourists? I do not know your situation financially or age  wise but, as I said I am retiring in April and pension I get is crap and can not live in UK. I am 100% sure you understand my point. Please excuse me if I have gone too far and I do apologize. I have noted every words you have said. I thank you.

My best wishes and greetings.

Regards

Hassan    .

Hello everybody:) Bulgaria is safe depending on the place of course. There are very nice and peaceful villages or small cities where you could have a peaceful and happy life. Weather is perfect people are friendly and most of young people speaks English and other foreign languages perfect:) The only things you should do is use a real estate agent with good reputation and a the right place. I would highly recommend for example the villages at the sea cost:)
If I could help with smth else please ask:)

Wish you a nice and slimy day!

Hello Hassan, sorry for the late reply! The village I live in has a couple of gypsies but they are no problem at all! they sometimes ask for jobs or a sigaret but that's it Appartments are quite expensive but most people renting them want at least a 2 bedroom appartment not smaller than 50/60m2, I don't know if tourists will rent them though, lots of hotels and townhouses for rent. For the long periods renting an appartement in Veliko Tarnovo would not be a problem at all! I am 25 and financially stable but I understand very well what you mean. We help people making the move to Bulgaria and are always happy to answer your questions ! Greetings Alex

Hi

I am living in Varna. I have lived in England and in South Africa and think it is a great place. I find it very safe. I don't have to watch my back when walking home late at night. There is not much violent crime here (I personally haven't seen any). If you want to buy a house here I would recommend you get a good solicitor to do the transaction for you. Just to make sure everything is legal and above board. You don't want to get caught out later.

Hi to answer your very reasonable question, there is a railway line with a station in Butovo. It dose carry freight as well as passengers, but it is not busy or intrusive. I have friends who live in that village we have a house in the next village Gradishte
the rail way line runs past the end of my garden I can see the trains but the sound of them is very low as they are quite away away over the fields. I love it. We will be living  at the end of the village, I would like to know why its not advisable to do so? any one got any answers. We are going to retire to our Gradishte home next year has any one got any information on the area or the village. Scottygolum