How many houses do you have?

No comment... 😎

👍

@Zooldrool

It's a pain in the proverbial, especially houses with gardens.

If you want to relocate and live there more-or-less full-time, it's a different issue. But as part of your multi-residence lifestyle, I'm not so sure it's worth the aggravation!

Having said that, we're just packing up now (with the cooler weather) to head back to the comfort and big city conveniences (and easy heating/cooling) of our city flat in Plovdiv. We just spent the summer (since late May) out in the Balkan Mountains (near Shipka), and I have to say that it was delightful. Very relaxing, and the weather/climate is definitely a lot more bearable than Plovdiv in the summer. I also just paid the property taxes today before leaving, and 3 years of taxes (plus late fees) was 130 euros.

The other issue is that lucky multi-property folks around here mostly picked them up 10-15 years ago when prices were a bit more appealing. The challenge now is to find a nice house in a scenic location that won't cost you an arm and a leg.

Also... while the property taxes (see above) are still very reasonable, I've read articles that Bulgaria is considering significant increases in property taxes, and ESPECIALLY for 2nd/3rd etc. properties, which would make a summer house far less palatable financially.

I would say that I'm happy that I purchased Bulgarian properties when we got here, but, at current prices, I'm not really interested in buying another. So far, properties taxes and utilities are still pretty inexpensive, so having an underutilized property is no big deal. But I'd guess I'll be looking to sell them (and "rationalize my portfolio") over the next few years.

In terms of what I've learned about the multi-property lifestyle, it's surprising how easy/comfortable city apartments are, with lots of amenities nearby, minimal upkeep, lower heating/cooling bills. And as I get older, I'm more enthused about having large city hospitals nearby rather than being out in the sticks. Houses, on the other hand, are potentially very charming (especially in a good location) but need lots of upkeep and the heating/cooling bills are much more dramatic. Finally, the holiday flat (ours in Bansko, the ski/mountain resort, rather than on the Black Sea) is, again, nice to have... but really it's such a waste paying for this to spend a few days a year there. It would be cheaper to just pay for a boutique hotel on Booking every time we go, instead!

@Zooldrool

We have two apartments in Varna.

One is the one we live in;  it's a three bedroom maisonette.

The other is a studio apartment, eight minutes walk from home, that we Airbnb.

The studio is work, but not too difficult, because it's a small property. I clean it after every departure and my wife washes the bedding. We earn around €3,000 a year from it, after tax, which we know could be much more, but, we choose to have longer gaps beyween guests, so that we can thoroughly clean and polish each time and, if necessary, repair anything.

We also own two garages and a parking space near to our home, but they require almost zero work.

We have thought about buying a house in a village somewhere around half an hour from Varna, or near Dobrich. We don't want the hassle of a house at the moment, as the kids are schooling in Varna at two different schools, my wife and I have medical issues, so we need to be near clinics and hospitals, but we have given it thought, for once the kids leave home.

Only got the one in a rural village and that's more than enough. With three dogs it's not much fun driving them around 😄

One house is definitely enough to manage, though a small city apartment would be nice, too. That was part of our original plan, but now way out of our preferred price range for a flat that will sit empty most of the time.

The garden maintenance and security are the main issues with owning houses. And as Gwyn said now also the price for anything decent.

@janemulberry

My experience has been that owning an apartment is very much a curate's egg: if there are simple ongoing expenses, like cleaning common areas or maintaining lifts, it's a nightmare to get everyone to pay their way; when it comes to a sinking fund, which is actually compulsory, it's next to impossible to collect the contributions.  Some owners don't want to be found, others just refuse to pay etc and there are no realistic sanctions that can be brought to bear on defaulters, unlike in France, where property can be seized. If you owe 10 euros in municipal tax, it can stymie the sale of an apartment, but a debt of thousands to the sinking fund is attached to the owner rather than the property, and doesn't even appear on the notary's radar.

As if that's not bad enough, there's always at least one neighbour who makes it their life's work to annoy and antagonise others in various ways. My wife and I have lived in apartments and would move heaven and earth not to repeat the experience unless we were genuinely in extremis..

Ugh! Yes, I can imagine there are plenty of potential challenges!

Possibly it's a blessing that I don't feel comfortable raiding our emergency fund nest egg to the extent apartments now cost.

@JimJ

Interesting.

I own an apartment in a two blocks, one small block, one big. The small one has just six apartments. We used to have a management company, to clean the floors, repair lighting (no lift) but we got fed up with their poor standard. Instead Apartment 2 looks after the money we all pay into the monthly fund. We all agreed to this. We pay a private cleaning lady to do the job and we repair the lights ourselves, which, so far, after a year is great - nice clean floors and lights that work properly. If we get an electrical problem, we have an excellent electrician. Yes, it's a small block, merely six apartments, but that's one big reason why I bought ours, knowing a smaller tight knit community is likely to get on with each other - and we all do.

On the other hand, the second apartment, a studio I Airbnb, is in a large block of 50 apartments and Kabinets. The management company is the same as the one that we sacked. Unfortunately, we can't sack then in this block and they continue with their sloppy standards. Our studio is on the 2nd floor (one up from ground. It's over another apartment, that an elderly couple own and who have caused everyone no end of trouble - they have nothing better to do, than complain; the latest complaint was our guest was talking on his phone (to his boss) at midnight - not loudly I might add, but the guy downstairs and his wife, have a problem with having a neighbor above them whatever.  He came up to our apartment, banged on the door -  disturbing other apartments and harassed our guest. Our guest is a mature student and took none of it and told him in English to fetch the police - of course being a bully, the old codger cowed off. Instead he phoned the caretaker lady, who he was also rude to, because she didn't side with him and after the call with him,  she phoned my wife. My wife and her have both agreed to report him to the local police, to obtain a crime reference - not that they'll do anything, but at least there's a record that they can check, when and if further events happen. 

If he steps out of iline again and the Police do nothing, other residents and ourselves, may well take it into our own hands to deal with him - it's not what you know, it's who you know - we won't harm him, but we'll certainly shut him up

As for payment of services in the block, 80% pay the management company on time - this is visible on a chart by the front door - we can all see what we owe.

@JimJ
Interesting.
I own an apartment in a two blocks, one small block, one big. The small one has just six apartments. We used to have a management company, to clean the floors, repair lighting (no lift) but we got fed up with their poor standard. Instead Apartment 2 looks after the money we all pay into the monthly fund. We all agreed to this. We pay a private cleaning lady to do the job and we repair the lights ourselves, which, so far, after a year is great - nice clean floors and lights that work properly. If we get an electrical problem, we have an excellent electrician. Yes, it's a small block, merely six apartments, but that's one big reason why I bought ours, knowing a smaller tight knit community is likely to get on with each other - and we all do.
On the other hand, the second apartment, a studio I Airbnb, is in a large block of 50 apartments and Kabinets. The management company is the same as the one that we sacked. Unfortunately, we can't sack then in this block and they continue with their sloppy standards. Our studio is on the 2nd floor (one up from ground. It's over another apartment, that an elderly couple own and who have caused everyone no end of trouble - they have nothing better to do, than complain; the latest complaint was our guest was talking on his phone (to his boss) at midnight - not loudly I might add, but the guy downstairs and his wife, have a problem with having a neighbor above them whatever. He came up to our apartment, banged on the door - disturbing other apartments and harassed our guest. Our guest is a mature student and took none of it and told him in English to fetch the police - of course being a bully, the old codger cowed off. Instead he phoned the caretaker lady, who he was also rude to, because she didn't side with him and after the call with him, she phoned my wife. My wife and her have both agreed to report him to the local police, to obtain a crime reference - not that they'll do anything, but at least there's a record that they can check, when and if further events happen.
If he steps out of iline again and the Police do nothing, other residents and ourselves, may well take it into our own hands to deal with him - it's not what you know, it's who you know - we won't harm him, but we'll certainly shut him up
As for payment of services in the block, 80% pay the management company on time - this is visible on a chart by the front door - we can all see what we owe. - @cyberescue1

Sorry, I'm having a bit of a problem following which events are in which block. 😉

I don't know how you have things organised in your small block but you are required to conform to the provisions of the Law on Management of Condominium Ownership (ZUES - Закон за управление на етажната собственост). This means, if there are four or more apartments in the block, that there has to be a General Assembly of all owners at least once a year, which elects an Internal Manager for a term of a maximum of two years; there has to be official minutes of the meeting. The Internal Manager, or another person appointed at the meeting, is responsible for collecting the money for maintenance. The internal Manager is required to the collect monthly contributions for the sinking fund (formally called the Repair and Renovation Fund (Фонд „Ремонт и обновяване“)) which cannot be less than 1% of the official monthly minimum wage (and had better be a lot more since major works will be required sooner or later, and finding a big chunk of dough in one hit can be no laughing matter). The money collected for maintenance can be kept in someone's personal account (but it's a VERY bad idea to do that - don't ask how I know 😎); by law, the sinking fund MUST be kept in a bank account set up for that sole purpose ( the bank will want to see the official general Meeting Minutes appointing the person opening and operating the account).

The local mayor has the responsibility to ensure that the provisions of ZUES are met, so if a condo block continuously fails to hold a General Assembly and elect a manager, the local mayor/municipal administration has the legal power to step in, convene a meeting, and assign an acting manager or force the election of one.

You'd be amazed how many owners have no idea of what the law is, or what is (or isn't) going on behind the scenes in their cosy condo until the doo-doo hits the proverbial fan and they're asked to shell out thousands of euros pronto!

There's a lot more bureaucratic stuff in ZUES, not to mention the acrobatics performed by the "investors" and builders who construct apartment blocks here; one of the more annoying is that once the last property is sold, the company which "owns" the guarantees for the building/complex is "sold" for a euro or two, usually to an indigent Roma who is paid to "buy" it and is then legally responsible for any claims for defects.  Since the new owner invariably has no assets whatsoever, that "20 Year Warranty" on the roof etc that the broker touted as copper-bottomed is in fact totally worthless..

@JimJ

We're pretty much following what you've stated in your first paragraph, for the small block we live in.

As far as I know though, never been asked by the Municipality or Mayor to produce any proof.

As for the Studio in the large block, they continually have meetings and all sorts of official posters on the notice board, about funds, insurance and management company.

@gwynj

"I would say that I'm happy that I purchased Bulgarian properties when we got here, but, at current prices, I'm not really interested in buying another."

Maybe it is as simple as this. Multiple property owners won't be so common going forward and Bulgaria will be like everywhere else in Europe - where people generally just own the one home.

@Zooldrool

Bulgaria, and the Balkans in general, are a bit different to most of Europe, in that it's common to have several properties in the immediate family, sometimes jointly owned by a ridiculous number of people. It can be a nightmare, especially when trying to sell them.

We're currently in the throes of buying a property but we always ensure that our lawyer carries out meticulous checks: in this case, the lady selling the property is a widow whose husband died several decades ago. The property was bought by her and was duly so registered in the cadastre - unfortunately nobody mentioned to their young children that their father died intestate and that because Mummy had bought the property during the marriage it became joint marital property and consequently they've unwittingly owned part of it since Daddy's demise. She was more than a little nonplussed that her little "oversight" had crawled out of the closet to bite her just when she was hoping to cash in on today's frenetic market...

@Zooldrool

I have 5 rentals   they are not any problem.

@Kevin Sweet

Oh wow nice. Retirement sorted.