Brief inspection of the housing situation in Bulgaria

House prices in Bulgaria's major cities rose by almost 10% last year, much faster than in the rest of the EU, where the average increase in house prices last year was 4.6%.

Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, impressed as property prices for the first time in most places in the city exceeded 1,000 euros per square meter. In some of the more prestigious places in Sofia, housing prices were 1,300 euros or more.

With house prices rising so quickly and inflation rising, the question is whether the Bulgarian property market is overheated and whether prices will continue to rise.

The data suggests we may be in a bubble. It's impossible to say with any certainty, but the signs are certainly not as positive as you'd like them to be. Price growth has been higher than income growth in some quarters – 10%.

However, it can be said that Bulgaria has changed. Every year, the number of foreign tourists visiting the country increases by 9%. Last year, more than 8 million foreign tourists visited Bulgaria.

Generally, from what we have seen, an increase in the number of foreign tourists always leads to a significant increase in interest in the real estate market. Countries with a thriving tourism sector also have a rapidly growing overseas property market. Spain, Cyprus, Greece and Türkiye are good examples of this.