Stability at Sofia property market
Year 2013 is expected to be one with not many surprises as far as the Sofia property market and numbers of sales are concerned. These are the predictions of the property agents, investors and leading economists. They all come to the conclusion that the price levels of the Sofia apartments will remain the same and the number of sales made will reach the same number as during the previous year 2012. the experts think that the mortgages taken will not be many, as there is a lack of one-bedroom newly-built apartments in Sofia that are ready for sale. At the same time, the Sofia property market is stable. there are certain risks that have to be taken into account like the coming elections, the high rate of unemployment and the slow restoration of the European economy.
The expectations of the real estate agents are that the property market will remain active in the low and middle price range. In other words, the prospective buyers will search for studio apartments and one-bedroom Sofia apartments at the price below 60 000 Euros. Agents confirm that there is also interest towards the two-bedroom apartments, as they are seen as more functional especially by families with more than one kid. There is yet one other tendency that has to be taken into consideration when discussing Sofia property market. Many people nowadays are too tired or frightened by the mortgages, even if they come with quite tempting conditions. These people are willing to take mortgage but only if it is absolutely necessary. According to a research made by Industry Watch agency in the last year the property market in Sofia was dominated by sales made with savings and loans from relatives and friends. Even when people do take mortgages to secure a certain Sofia apartment, they still consider them as a sum that helps them and not as main financial means as it was before the crises.
In this situation of general economic instability and high level of unemployment, people are feeling insecure about their income. Even if they decide to invest in a certain apartment in Sofia, they are still not willing to get into more debts. That is why the banks and other financial institutions should not expect an increase in the number of mortgages taken for another period of at least 6 or even 12 months. If there is such a demand, it would be for mortgages with fixed interest rates, which are offered in Bulgarian leva and not in Euro. These were the requirements of the Sofia property buyers in 2012 and this tendency will most probably remain the same this year. The young people who used finance help last year to purchase their own apartment in Sofia were willing to get mortgage with fixed rate for a certain period of time due to the low levels of risk and the expectancy of the monthly installments.
