Bulgaria Sees Decline in New Residential Buildings

Preliminary data from the National Statistical Institute reveals a decrease in the number of residential buildings and dwellings constructed in Bulgaria during the July-September period. A total of 1,239 buildings were completed, housing 5,085 new dwellings, marking a decrease of 7.3% in buildings and a 14.4% drop in dwellings compared to the same quarter in 2022. The data highlights the influence of new construction on property prices, with more available buildings in a neighborhood leading to more moderate pricing, while areas without new construction see soaring property prices.

The majority of these newly constructed buildings (73.5%) are made of reinforced concrete, while 23.3% are built from brick. Residential buildings comprised 76.0% of the newly constructed properties, followed by housing cooperatives at 15.3%. However, there was a decrease in the number of newly built houses and housing cooperatives compared to the previous year.

Sofia, the capital city, led in the number of residential buildings commissioned with 182 buildings accommodating 1,413 dwellings. Plovdiv and Burgas followed with 174 buildings (548 dwellings) and 136 buildings (1,073 dwellings), respectively.

The data also reveals that two-bedroom homes remain the most sought-after by buyers (37.0%), followed by three-bedroom homes (32.7%). Homes with six or more rooms have the lowest share at 3.7%. Although three-bedroom homes have seen increased demand in recent years, driven by remote work and schooling during the pandemic, two-bedroom homes remain highly popular.

The total useful area of newly constructed homes decreased by 13.2% compared to the same quarter in 2022, reaching 486.7 thousand square meters, with residential area declining by 13.1% to 387.7 thousand square meters. In contrast, the average usable area of newly built homes increased from 94.4 sq.m in 2022's third quarter to 95.7 sq.m in the same period of 2023.

Notably, districts like Vidin (400 sq.m.) and Silistra (278.4 sq.m.) boast the largest average useful areas for newly built dwellings, while areas such as Burgas (61.7 sq.m.) and Shumen (63.7 sq.m.) feature smaller averages.

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