Independent: Bulgaria: Will it be sand, snow or city?

"As emerging property markets go, few can rival the hype or promise of Bulgaria, three areas of which are now being heavily marketed to British buyers."

"A second investment area is the ski region, chiefly the town of Bansko, although Pamporovo and Borovets are also now popular."
Source: Independent

San Francisco Chronicle: BULGARIA: Iron Curtain lifted slowly on country brimming with European allure

Image: Plovdiv Guide

"Roughly the size of Ohio, the country is blessed with an abundance of the things that call us to Europe. During my week there I gazed at haunting medieval frescoes in thousand-year-old churches, sipped surprisingly good wines in sidewalk cafes, poked around well-preserved Roman ruins and passed through rural villages where horse-drawn carts still trundle down cobbled lanes. There was so much to see that I never made it to the sun-baked beaches of Bulgaria's Black Sea coast (which, I understand, have been largely colonized by Brits and Germans on package holidays)."
Source: San Francisco Chronicle

Digital Media Europe: Globul to launch 3G service in autumn 2006

Keywords: Globul, Cosmote

"Bulgarian operator Globul has unveiled some of the capabilities of its 3G service, which include video calls and video streaming. Globul is to launch the service by the end of September 2006.

The 3G network is capable of making video calls and video streaming, which includes live TV and video. The exact description and the prices of the operator's 3G services will be announced at their commercial launch in September 2006."
Source: Digital Media Europe

Digital Media Europe: Black Sea resorts to receive 3G, UMTS and HSDPA services

Keywords: Mobiltel, 3G, UMTS, HSDPA, Black Sea

"Mobiltel customers travelling in and around the Black Sea will have access to 3G, UMTS and HSDPA services starting 1 July 2006.

Customers in the Southern Black Sea will have access to Bulgarian telcommunications operator Mobitel's 3G network as of July 1, 2006. Starting 8 July, UMTS and HSDPA network coverage will extend to Varna and the resorts along the Northern Black Sea. Resorts in Burgas and Albena already receive 3G network coverage."
Source: Digital Media Europe

Digital Media Europe: Bulgarian winter resorts to get high-speed internet access, additional fixed phone lines

Keywords: Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC)

"Bulgarian national telco the Bulgarian Telecommunication Company (BTC) is investing over 2 million leva to renovate fixed-line telephony and install ADSL internet capability in three winter resorts: Bansko, Borovets and Pamporovo.

At Bansko, BTC aims to increase the telephone capacity by 30 per cent, which will make it possible to completely digitalize the local phone network. BTC is to increase the telephone capacity in Borovets by over 30 per cent, while increasing the capacity in Pampovo and the neighbouring towns of Shiroka Luka and Stojkite by 100 per cent."
Source: Digital Media Europe

Assetz News: Bulgaria strengthens lead as property hotspot

"Bulgaria has managed to further improve its reputation as a property investment hotspot in the last three months, according to the latest investment Tracker.

The second quarter of 2006 actually saw Bulgaria improving its position considerably, from a 116 per cent return on cash invested in March to 137 per cent in June, according to research from Assetz."
Source: Assetz News

International Herald Tribune: The rise and rise of Bulgarian property

"Anyone who has bought property in Bulgaria will tell you that the prices are so low, it is impossible to lose. Prices will continue to rise. The only uncertainty is by how much. And how long.

The Balkan country already has had 12 years of increases. And the National Statistical Institute reported in January that the average sales price per square meter for residential properties in Bulgarian cities had gone up 36.6 percent in the previous year.

But residential prices in Sofia still average only €600, or $717, per square meter, or $66 per square foot. That is much less than the €750 average per square meter in Bratislava, Slovakia; €850 in Bucharest and €1,500 in Prague, according to the National Real Property Association of Bulgaria.

Those numbers have pushed Bulgaria squarely into the real estate spotlight, attracting West Europeans lured by the current hot place for vacation homes and, to a lesser extent, for investment."
Source: International Herald Tribune

Independent: Bulgaria: Sofia so good

"Robert Nurden sees potential in city flats, ski apartments and seaside resorts."
Source: Independent

Photos:
Bulgaria - Flickr

Telegraph: A little place on the piste

"A ski home for as little as £30,000? Nicola Venning finds bargains in Bulgaria..."

"For a real ski home bargain, it would be hard to beat Bulgaria. Bansko, an intermediate-level ski resort in the south-west Pirin mountains has recently spent ?130million on improving its 65km of pistes (which reach up to 2,560m) including a new cable car, seven chair lifts and six drag lifts."
Source: Telegraph

Times: When the ice melts

BUDGET OPTION: BULGARIA
"Low property prices and inexpensive ski passes (usually under £10 a day) make Bulgaria ideal for a budget ski property. Because of the level of challenge its slopes can offer, it is also most suitable for the occasional skier and for those with little experience. The season lasts from mid-December to late March or even late April, and there are daily flights from Britain; the low-cost airlines have not moved in yet, so fares are comparatively high."
Source: Times

Bloomberg: U.K. Bankers May Spend 3 Billion Pounds on Homes After Bonuses

"Bankers and other employees in London's financial industry are set to spend 3 billion pounds ($5.3 billion) of their 2005 bonuses on buying more than 20,000 new homes in the next few months, according to a report published today."

"Some of the bonuses will be spent on buying real estate overseas in countries such as Bulgaria, Spain, India and China, Nick Clark, chairman of the Homebuyer Show, which takes place in London's Docklands district on March 16-18, said in the statement."
Source: Bloomberg

Independent: Bansko: The upwardly mobile ski resort

"Stephen Wood reports from Bansko, the Bulgarian resort hoping to replace Andorra as Europe's budget skiing capital."
Source: Independent