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A total of 1928 projects, worth BGN 1,16 M, have been approved and financed under SAPARD since its creation, it was announced at a pioneer forum about the future of Bulgaria's agriculture in the European Union.

After weeks of allegations of SAPARD funds embezzlement, Agriculture Minister Nihat Kabil remain consistent in ruling out the possibility of misusing funds under the EU program, as claimed by local media reports.

Speaking at the forum "Bulgaria's agriculture in the European Union", the minister said the improvement of the Bulgarian agriculture and the quality of the production as well as the establishment of favourable living conditions for the Bulgarian farmers are among the main aims of the country's Agriculture Ministry.

"Once we join the Union in 2007 the most decisive period of the Bulgarian agriculture is about to begin", Kabil argued.

The agriculture sector in Bulgaria provides jobs for 30,000 people or 10% of all working people in the country.

Nearly 70 km of highways will be constructed by the end of the year, managing director of the national roads agency Vesselin Georgiev said.

More than 1000 km of roads will be restored in 2006 and 2007, Darik Radio reported.

Most widely used roads and highways will be repaired before the start of the summer season, said Georgiev.

Plans for the construction of new roads will be ready by the end of the year so that the agency applies for EU funding in the beginning of 2007, said he.

The agency will also complete the documentation needed for the initiation of concession tenders for Strouma, Maritsa and Cherno More highways.

Georgiev said the agency needs 285 million leva for road repairs after the floods this year and last summer. The sum does not include funds needed for repairs in municipalities alongside the Danube. Water there has not pulled out and damages will be calculated later, said Georgiev.

The construction of a luxurious holiday complex near Bulgaria's Pamporovo resort has begun, media revealed Saturday.

Perelik Palace will cost EUR 5 M to the investors, the 21 Century company. It will offer luxurious holiday homes and spa & sports facilities in one place.

A total of 61 one-bedroom apartments, 4 two-bedroom apartments, 3 three-bedroom apartments, 91 studios and 9 maisonette apartments will be available for seekers of a quite and comfortable retreat in the beautiful mountain.

The complex should be ready next November, the Investor.bg website reports.

The interest of foreign investors in Central and Eastern European property continues.

As a result of the high demand, the region might be unable to offer enough real estate purchase opportunities, Dnevnik newspaper reported.

Western investors? interest is on the rise also because of the expected EU membership of several countries in the region, the Wall Street Journal reported. This development would likely guarantee investment stability and will minimise economic risks.

Last year Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Russia and Slovakia acquired 5.8 billion euro through property deals. The figure represents a 38 per cent increase compared to the 4.19 billion euro in 2004.

Poland registered the highest increase, followed by the Czech Republic and Hungary.

Office property investment represents the highest share. It totals 44 per cent of the overall investment in the region. Investors also seem to be highly interested in trade areas.

The main problem investors expect this year is the inability to find enough suitable offers to meet the high demand, Dnevnik reported.

Bulgarian companies will also increase investment in the sector. Currently the stock exchange lists 13 investment trusts, specialised in property. Three more companies will be listed soon.

SkyEurope expands eastwards and enters Bulgaria and Romania
SkyEurope has been granted traffic rights to launch services to Bucharest and Sofia

SkyEurope Airlines, Central Europe?s largest low-cost low-fare airline, announced today its entry on the Bulgarian and Romanian aviation markets, after obtaining traffic rights from Bulgarian and Romanian authorities.

SkyEurope Airlines was established 4 years ago, in 2001, and pioneered low-cost aviation in Central Europe by becoming the first low-cost airline to open bases in Bratislava (Slovakia), Budapest (Hungary) and Krakow (Poland). To further build on its first mover advantage, SkyEurope is now expanding eastwards, with the first low-fare flights between Bratislava, conveniently located only 50 km away from Vienna, and the Bulgarian and Romanian capitals.

Flights to and from Sofia and Bucharest will begin on the 9th and 12th of December, respectively, with fares starting from as low as ? 25 one-way excluding taxes. A SkyShuttle bus service between Bratislava Airport and the city of Vienna is available to SkyEurope passengers.

A National Tourism Board will be established in Bulgaria on May 3, it emerged during a conference, organized by the Bulgarian Convention and Visitors Bureau (BCVB).

Bulgaria's State Tourism Agency head Mario Al-Jebouri pointed out that congress tourism is one of the country's priorities. Its problems have been separated in a special chapter in the new strategy for tourism development, Al-Jebouri underlined during the conference "European future of Bulgarian tourism."

Polly Karastoyanova, BCVB Managing Director, specified that beautiful resorts are not enough to say that Bulgaria is a well-developed tourism destination. The unsolved problems with infrastructure, old seaports and airports and the weak tourism advertising remain a factor.

Property prices in Sofia continue to rise according to the latest imoti.net data.

For the last six months the price of a square metre has risen to nearly 600 euro. Among the most expensive suburbs are Ivan Vazov, Yavorov and the central parts of the city, Banker newspaper reported.

Brokers say offers lower than 400 euro a square metre have simply disappeared. Cheaper properties include those in Obelya, Tolstoi, Svoboda and Lyulin.

Interest in properties situated less than an hour away from Sofia city also rises, brokers say. These estates are cheaper, less than 370 euro a sq m.

Among the most expensive towns in Sofia region is Samokov, due to its proximity to Borovetz ski resort. Koprivshtitza offers newly built houses in the traditional architectural style. Dolna Banya is another place attracting investors' interest. As a spa resort near Borovetz, it offers good opportunities for tourism.

Property prices in the regions mentioned vary from 300 to 700 euro a sq m, but brokers say that these cheap offers will not hold on for long and prices will inevitably rise. This makes buying an estate near Sofia in 2006 a really good investment, Banker newspaper reported.





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Bulgaria and the World Bank enter a new stage in their co-operation that aims at preparing the country for its EU accession and integration.

The new partnership strategy for the period from 2007 to 2009 was discussed today between Economy and Energy Minister Roumen Ovcharov and Economic Policy Council members.

In the future, the World Bank will support policies and investment needed for Bulgaria's successful EU entry. Based on the country's achievements in the last few years, it will maintain the income and labour effectiveness policies and will further invest into human and physical capital.

Using its experience in working with new EU members, the World Bank will promote knowledge transfer and will provide consultations and expert analysis of the administrated financial resources.

The new strategy budget is $300 million a year. The funds should serve to eliminate regional differences and help better EU financing administration.

Bulgaria will be presented as an attractive tourism destination during the St. Petersburg tourism fair, which started yesterday.

The tenth annual international tourism forum will last four days, Focus news agency reported. Through it, Russian tourism agencies get new contacts and information about various destinations and international tourism opportunities.

This fair is seen as one of the most representative tourism forums taking place in the beginning of the summer season.

Due to the importance of the event, the State Tourism Agency and seven tourism companies will represent Bulgaria. Participants will present tourism opportunities and the novelties Bulgaria offers during a press conference.

At the same time State Tourism Agency head Mario al-Djebouri will discuss the difficulties and opportunities related to the start of the new summer season. Al-Djebouri met in Bourgas representatives of the regional hotel and restaurant association.

One of the main problems is the lack of qualified employees for the newly opened hotels. The number of new hotels, which started functioning in 2004 is 185 and in 2005, 98.

I. Property market condition
II. Challenges. Professional standards
III. Perspectives

By this study we would like to introduce to you some main trends in the development of the property market on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast.

I. Property market
Head lines in Bulgarian and foreign media such as "foreigners choose the Bulgarian houses " or " Bulgarian Black Sea Coast turned into a continuous built-up area" do not surprise anybody any more. Foreign TV programs "discover" "the best kept secret of Europe - Bulgaria".

Let's not miss advice of competent magazines like "Times" and others - "turn your attention to the east" or "let's buy property in Bulgaria now". Our country is in the top lists not only as a tourist destination, but also as attractive opportunity to gain a property /the so called "second home"/ together with the indisputable leaders - Spain, Portugal, Greece and Cyprus.

And this is understandable - it is the opportunity to buy properties at the lowest prices in Europe, close to beautiful beaches or ski resorts, with marvelous weather and low cost of living.

The traditional presentations of Bulgaria to interested investors introduce the "Bulgarian economy as one of the stable and quick developing economies on the Balkans", with different investment opportunities in short and long terms.

There are some examples: more than 3,5 million are the registered tourists for 2003 or 18% growth in the tourist visits, accordingly over 20% growth for the following 2004, 14% growth in the real estate deals for 2004. The foreign investments in connection with properties for the preceding year 2003 amount to 98 million Euro and for the first half of this year 2004 are 216 million Euro.

To be correct the finalized transactions for Varna area for the period between 2000 and October 2004 show growth of 51,6%.

Offering a new build quality on our whole coast - as functional residential houses and apartments meeting European standard, including furniture, is a very often fact. The known final condition at the residential building - Bulgarian State Standard, gives way to the increased offers to the clients of fully completed apartments "until key", with choice of additional equipment and furniture.

The next segment of property types - village houses, shows certain artificial and unreal rise of the selling prices - because of the will of the owners to make more profit. Reason for this is also the increasing of the number of new built or renovated two- or three-bedroom family houses - aiming to sell them. Such small investment projects are sponsored by foreigners too. For example in villages, 15-20 km away from the sea or town are offered village houses with very close final price levels to those of apartments in the city.

On the other hand the slow offering of land properties on the northern Black sea coast - because of the high interest of the investors mainly in the south, begins to increase and the number of the finalized transactions in the north of Byala town continuously rises. The fore coming building of golf courses, private airports and tourist resorts connected with the village tourism will maintain this trend.

This is the reason why so many investors /Bulgarian and foreign clients/ are interested in the constructing of holiday complexes and buying of apartments in residential areas with the possibility for rent, this in areas close to tourist resorts or a sea town.

Renovating and preplanning of already existing houses in such areas brings profits and quick returns of the investment. In the area of the Holiday Resort "Golden Sands" already started the offering of five housing estates with whole living area more than 43000sq.m., and three of the estates are offered by the company "Golden sands" PLC. The prices here start at 790 Euro per square meter and go up to 1400 Euro per square meter for fully completed and luxury furnished apartments.

The vocational holiday resorts in the areas of "Riviera" and "Tchajka" offer prices in-between 800 and 1200 Euro pre square meter depending on the exposure and view to the sea.

The living area of the offered apartments is between 48 and 280 sq.m. II. Challenges
The entry of Bulgaria in the European structures, the finance stabilization, the widening of the range for crediting private (physical) and firm (juridical) persons are the main conditions, stimulating the sensitive property market.

The development of tourism leads to the necessity of better services and new better base with contemporary architectural decisions. The main lapse in this intensive process is the lack of clear regulations in terms of the preservation of the unique nature of the area.

In the last two years parts of our coast have become unrecognizable. For example the junction of Sveti Vlas, Sunny beach and Nessebar. Many of our clients often compare Bulgaria with Spain but in other way - "your country and its nature are very beautiful but don't commercialize everything so much!"??

Witnessing the massive new development of hotels and residential buildings in the area of Sunny beach we expect adequate synchronization of the investor's demand and the introducing of the discussed legislation about the Bulgarian coast. Restrictions are acceptable, but with the adequate specifying of the consequences for the investment process. Substantial part of the biggest are concentrated exactly in the attractive two-kilometers zone. Indisputably massive freezing or drawing back of capitals won't be good for the image of the country. These, who have invested in these regions, will be hardly able to reinvest in other regions. More likely they will turn to other developing economies in the region - this means out of Bulgaria.

The application of a legislation, which meets the standards of the EU will guarantee the balanced proportion between buildings, ecology and nature. Exactly this proportion will continue to attract quality tourists and serious investors. Of course the coming development in the legislation will stimulate the prices of already working hotels, vacation villages and resorts.

But it would be self-delusion if we think that the legislation will solve the problems in this area.

We already witness alarming symptoms and examples of uncontrolled and unregulated companies. The number of suspicious foreign mediation companies, taxi drivers, acquaintance agencies, change offices or firms of Bulgarians, who work abroad as part of the unprofessional "brokers" rises headlong. Such firms with two-weeks-experience offer properties without the knowledge and even wish of the owners, represent false documentation etc. After critical situations of ruthless arrogance to clients and lack of elementary knowledge such firms freeze their existence on the market - to appear again under new name in few days?

It's a pity this is the way we gain negative image - not only the profession, but also all the "procedures along the sale-trade of properties". Mistrust and lack of confidence exist not only for the foreign people, but for the Bulgarians as well.

Without going in further details we would like to express the general opinion of all the colleagues from other estate agencies too, that control and are specializing in the profession connected with real estates are necessary.

III. Perspectives
The development of our country is not an isolated process. The property market, which here has an enormous potential reacts very accurately to all economic periods of development and prognostication connected with the country and the European Union. The forth coming decline of the constitutional prohibitions foreigners to buy land is one of the main terms to increase the investments and to ensure better legal guarantees for foreign physical persons, who are interested in buying a property in Bulgaria.

The entry of our country into the EU usually is emphasized by the owners as the main reason to put up the prices. Rising of prices to the levels of the other eastern European countries is quite real. Recognizing the different start positions of countries like Poland, Hungary, Check republic, Rumania, Lithuania, Slovakia, Cyprus, the average prices in our country are still lower.

The public discussion of the penetration of the European and World standards in our legislation, in the services, in the construction imposes the application of the very same standards and relations in the direct work with real estates. Work with confirmed agencies, members of national and branch associations, possessing license and professional certificates for licensed training will guarantee successful investments in the property market.