Increasing Property Prices

Did you end up buying one when you were previously looking? Good buy, if so!

@JimJ

It's getting like that in Varna too. In January, they extended the Blue Zone, and a whole chunk of Varna suddenly became paid parking, both residents and visitors.  This had a result of many moving their cars to the areas that are still free, which in turn, made parking in the free areas hell.

My wife and I saw it all coming. We bought two garages and a parking space in 2022 - one for €21,000 one for €22,000 and the parking space €12,000.  Those values are now €33,000, €34,000 and €23,000. The rent we can get is €150 per month each garage and €100 for the parking space.  Best investment ever - nearly as good as investing in gold!

We are not retiring for another 10-15 years at least... Bulgaria will probably be too expensive for us by then!!. Couldn't believe some of the prices in the restaurants this summer, almost cheaper at home.

@Zooldrool

Best to check out some of the EU candidate states that are still comparatively inexpensive..

Which towns/cities were you dining in.

Noticed Veliko Tarnovo a little more expensive this summer but still not bad, 4 mains 4 drinks 2 desserts just under €50.

Local bar bottle bulgarian beer and 50ml JD with a 3in1 coffee €2.40.

Bulgaria definitely isn't as low-cost as it was and a UK pension won't stretch as far anymore. Still lower cost than the UK for many things, and some things will cost more.  For us, the quality of life is better in so many ways in Bg. Though there are sure to be challenges I doubt we'll seriously regret deciding to move.

But someone going to Bg seeking a much cheaper place to live is probably going to be disappointed. We've well and truly missed the boat on any chance of buying a city apartment, as I'd hoped to do.

But still cheaper than uk equivalent

Bulgaria: The cheapest option within the European Union (EU), offering EU infrastructure with a low price baseline.

@Zooldrool Having seen a post on one of the pages where someone paid €30 for two pathetic toasted cheese sandwiches, a portion of chips and chicken nuggets, I agree

As Jane says, the cost of living in Bulgaria has most  definitely gone up. I live in the second most expensive city, Varna and my wife says we're getting ripped off in this city.  However, I've put in place ways to save money.  I shop around - the whole country - indeed, shopping online can save a significant sum...  For instance, we buy a specific Italian made kitchen roll (because we like the quality) in Varna, the average price is €5.11, in Plovdiv and Sofia we've found it for €4.05 - over a Euro saving and we buy 32 rolls at a time, once a month. We're saving on water too, because we've replaced all our taps and shower heads with with ones that use less water - we've gone from an average of 20 tons, down to 15.  Buying food and provisions from different supermarkets saves, but takes time and energy to search the bargains Lidl is cheap for some things, but shops like DM and Lilly can be equally low cost on certain products. We have a loyalty discount card for Billa and regularly check the offers. We have loyalty cards for Lidl and My Market (our local supermarket). My wife's work gives her monthly vouchers to spend on food at Burleks, Lidl, Bulmag and Lilly.

It's important to look at the entire cost of living, not just food - Rent (if you do) utilities, wood for burning, TV and internet, municipality tax, insurance, food, provisions, clothing, eating out, gifts, car running expenses (if you have one)  school costs (if you have kids) health costs.  It's important to get a complete picture.  The UK is still significantly more expensive than Bulgaria, even with the increase in food in Bulgaria. The UK is around 60% more expensive.  That said, the problem lies with income. If your income hasn't gone up and or, kept up with inflation, you're going to find it difficult in both countries, because you're being out priced and that's very much the case for UK earners - zero or low increases and taxed to the hilt.

As Jane also says and I have to agree, life in Bulgaria, whilst not perfect, is certainly better than the UK - at least I can walk the streets, without the worry of being attacked, or in the case of women, raped. I can afford to live, albeit, carefully, I can relate to and make friends with Bulgarians, with their conservative culture. I can enjoy the weather, the food and the scenery. I have the best relationship with my Bulgarian wife, over any other I've ever had.

I think you can say that in most countries that you are being ripped off in one way or the other.

We don't do our food shopping in one store, but we visit all of them, and if we see a good offer then we will buy it.

Only last month, I noticed 1kg of coffee beans had 50% off because of the sell by date. I bought the lot. what should have been €20, was €10. I can't drink instant if I have to.

I grow alot of my vegetables so I don't have that added cost.

The cost of diesel has shot up again, over €2 a litre again! Every time Trump opens his mouth about Iran, he screws the markets and oil industry up.

In Vienna - A typical Vienna apartment costs about €6,700 per square meter. A 70 m² (≈ 750 sq ft) flat — the most common size — runs about €475,000. That is roughly $515,000 for US readers or £405,000 for UK readers. The cheapest districts start near €5,200/m² (≈ $560/sq ft); the most central can hit €14,000/m² (≈ $1,500/sq ft). Vienna sits well below Munich, Paris, Zurich and London — and slightly above Berlin and Prague.

On a €475,000 apartment, that means roughly €42,000–52,000 on top with the added fees.

[Land transfer tax (Grunderwerbsteuer) — 3.5% of the purchase price.

Land register fee — 1.1%.

Notary / contract drafter — usually €3,000–5,000 flat fee.

Agent commission (if a broker is involved on the buyer side) — up to 3% plus 20% VAT.

Foreign-buyer permit (non-EU) — modest administrative fee, plus the legal hours to prepare it.]

@SimCityAT

Your diesel is expensive! We’re only paying €1.72 in Silistra, although that’s expensive enough.

Most Expensive CountriesThe

Netherlands: ~€2.38 (gasoline) / €2.43 (diesel)

Denmark: ~€2.33 / €2.47

Finland: ~€2.18 / €2.28

Germany: ~€2.10 / €2.18

Mid-Range and Average Countries

France: ~€1.97 / €2.17

Italy: ~€1.99 / €2.08

Spain: ~€1.69 / €1.81

Poland: ~€1.76 / €1.88

Least Expensive Countries

Malta: ~€1.34 / €1.21

Andorra: ~€1.49 / €1.59

Turkey: ~€1.27 / €1.45

Russia/Belarus: Under €0.80 per liter

@SimCityAT

"EU infrastructure"? 🤣

I noticed fuel in our region (Dobrich) worked out much the same as the UK.

The grocery bill is significantly more than it was a few years ago, but can be reduced by shopping around a bit, taking advantage of the special offers, and buying fruit and veg in the weekly market rather than the supermarket. Our new village shop is well-stocked and surprisingly inexpensive for some items.

Water and electricity bills are way cheaper in Bg than they are at our UK house. I haven't needed to buy firewood yet, but I don't imagine it will cost more than our UK gas bills (winter heating only with old style gas fires). Mobile phone and internet are also cheaper.

Council tax is 50 times more expensive in the UK!

Pet food is a bigger cost, more expensive in Bg, but vet bills are way cheaper.

We're spending a lot now because we're running two houses and paying for frequent travel, but once we make the move, sell our UK house, and are living in Bg, I expect our costs will drop dramatically.

@janemulberry

Make sure you buy an LPG car in BG.... 😎

@JimJ

Just go electric surely, then you can avoid the gas stations all together.

@JimJ

I don't see much value in these either...unless your talking about Ukraine.

@cyberescue1

Tell me more about the "Italian kitchen roll" - for various reasons we're always looking for good quality ones.

@Zooldrool

All LPG cars (that I'm aware of) run on petrol as well. We often do long runs, so having a petrol tank as well as a gas tank is very useful. If I were just running around town, a small EV would be ideal but I need to be able to handle (fairly) large items and set off on long runs without messing about looking for charging stations or waiting to recharge.

I could certainly see myself buying a small-ish EV at some time in the future, DV...

@janemulberry
Make sure you buy an LPG car in BG.... 😎 - @JimJ

Yes, a couple of taxi drivers have told me this, as well.

Unfortunately electric isn't the best option as we're a fair way from town, though I had wondered about the hybrid Dacia Duster (I had a look at their offerings after you recommended one).

@JimJ

Foxy Tornado. Soft, good absorbancy, good perforations - consistent. Good size, bigger than most, sheet shape consistent - many are not. Stronger than most, no bits falling off whilst wiping , 250 sheets per roll.

freshhome dot bg

@cyberescue1

Thanks, I'll have shufti when I'm next in Via Trakia, the ginormous Italian supermarket opposite Bauhaus (not to be confused with the other Italian supermarket, confusingly also called Via Trakia 😁).

Bauhaus is, very handily, close to our current renovation project...