Property for sale in all regions of Bulgaria
Property for
sale in Bulgaria News
News 02 April 2006
Winter sports fans snapping up property in
ski resorts are driving British interest in Bulgaria and Canada.
The latest Global Property Hot Spots league compiled by currency specialist
HIFX has shown enquiries for cash aimed at purchasing homes in the pair
of increasingly popular destinations for British skiers rose substantially
in February.
Interest in Canada rose by 66% during the month, while enquiries for Bulgaria
increased by 17%.
But both continued to hold a far smaller proportion of all enquires –
9.4% for Bulgaria and 2% for Canada – than old favourites Spain and
France, which attracted 25.25% and 17.8% of all interest respectively.
Interest in Australia, which had risen rapidly in January, fell back substantially
– dropping by 63% to 10.6% of all enquiries – while demand for
the United Arab Emirates, home to Dubai, fell 79% to 1.5% of all enquiries.
Bulgaria's reputation as the latest property hotspot has been supported
by the arrival of upmarket estate agents Savills and Hamptons in the market.
Both have begun to heavily advertise new property
in Bansko, considered the country's number one ski resort.
The luxury apartments are expensive by Bulgarian standards but the agents
have vowed to offer a five-star service with problems often encountered
in property purchases in the country ironed out.
Experts have warned however that the Eastern European property bubble could
be at risk of overheating, with large numbers of developments being built
and investors chasing high returns who could be easily scared off by any
market wobble.
HIFX said its study showed Britons considering buying property abroad fell
into three categories.
The traditionalists make up the largest group – opting for holiday
homes in France, Spain and other destinations close to the UK. Cheap flights,
the ease of renting out properties, a well-established expat community and
the simplicity of escaping to the sun are the driving force behind their
purchases.
Adventurers were more daring in their choices, heading further afield and
tending to be at the vanguard of investment in either less familiar destinations
such as Bulgaria and Morocco, or farther afield, in Canada, Australia and
New Zealand.
The most flexible group were hotspot investors, whose financially driven
decisions led to countries in Eastern Europe, such as Bulgaria
and Estonia, and the latest rising markets, such as Dubai and
Egypt.
Each set of buyers faced their own risks, with traditionalists hit by higher
prices, adventurers taking on unproven markets and hotspot chasers at the
mercy of changing fads or sudden market fluctuation.
Mark Bodega, marketing director at HIFX, said: 'People buy abroad for many
different reasons. For some people it's an emotional decision based on a
life-long dream, for others it's an exciting step into the unknown and for
some it's simply a financial investment.'
HIFX's February league showed Portugal made up 4% of enquiries, the US accounted
for 3.8% and Italy totalled 1.6%.
More exotic destinations regularly featured on lifestyle property television
shows also made the list, including 3.1% of enquiries for the Cape Verde
Islands, 1.2% for Turkey and 1.1% for Morocco.
Snow news is good news.
It has been a great season for British skiers for that most obvious of reasons:
both North America and the Alps have had great snow. The industry has also
been helped by new destinations, such as Finland, Slovenia and Serbia. And
it is not over - in the Rockies and the Alps, the snow base is ensuring
one of the later seasons in recent history. A combination of superb conditions
and tour operators working harder than ever to sell new resorts has offset
a certain caution in people's spending habits.
Crystal's annual research report on the British ski market doesn't come
out until summer; meanwhile, the evidence suggests that there has been a
small increase in the numbers of skiers in the traditional countries - France,
Italy, Switzerland and Austria - but the main growth is elsewhere.
The US has been boosted by additional direct flights to Denver, with something
like a doubling of the number of British skiers in the Rockies. The snow
has been brilliant, extending the season - we are off to Breckenridge this
weekend - and issues such as tougher immigration requirements have done
nothing to stem demand. Canada has seen a fall in UK visitors this year,
despite a sharp recovery by Whistler. So the ease of getting to a resort
does matter.
Other things that have helped the US have been a reasonable exchange rate,
a big effort by the UK operators there and deals such as a free lift-pass
offer at Copper Mountain. Tip for independent travellers: buy a ski-pass
early and online, and you can often get a big reduction in the cost.
One of the most interesting things will be to see how much the transatlantic
habit will grow. Once people have experienced the dry powder of the Rockies,
some will lose interest in Europe. They will also want to test the more
exotic North American ski-areas such as Montana's Big Sky. Should the dollar
weaken against the euro, expect the transatlantic boom to gain even more
legs.
In the Alpine resorts there has been a lot of work to increase the British
market, particularly in France. The general impression, however, is that
some tour operators are finding things pretty flat. But Nina MacMaster of
Neilson reckons that although the figures appear a bit down, "Overall
there may have actually been a slight increase year-on-year - possibly with
many people taking second or even third ski trips but not full weekend-to-weekend
breaks."
The real boom for ski operators has been in the "new" market.
Neilson notes the success of Bansko
in Bulgaria, where many Brits are buying apartments in anticipation
of the country's entry into the EU. You have to realise that for a lot of
people, skiing is not just about fun: it is also about investment... or
maybe the investment is part of the fun. First Choice has had success with
Bulgaria and also Serbia, where Kopaonik was featured on the BBC early in
January and then sold out for the rest of the season.
Aside from value, there are three powerful reasons why Eastern European
resorts will boom, maybe at the expense of the established Alpine ones.
One is that Eastern Europe gets people into skiing in a low-risk way; a
family will have a good holiday at a very reasonable price. Another is that
these countries will work hard with the tour operators to adapt their product
to British needs. Small, hitherto unknown places can get into a huge market
in a way they could not hope to do without the ski-specialists. And finally
British people want to go somewhere new, particularly if somebody else has
done the legwork of organising it.
Another intriguing new area is Finland. Crystal has introduced three resorts
in the Arctic Circle: Ruka, Pyha and Iso-Syote, offering activities from
learning to drive a reindeer sledge, husky safaris and wilderness tours.
The really hardy can have a day on an ice-breaker and swim among the ice
floes, making the black-run rowdies look sissy. First Choice is planning
more Lapland holidays, too.
But there are shadows hanging over the industry. One is the environment.
The great snow this season may have pushed global warming to the back of
people's minds, but no one wants to go on a holiday and feel they are damaging
the planet. So I would expect much more of an effort, including projects
such as carbon-offset payments.
The other shadow is danger. The Alps have had a dreadful season, with more
than 50 people losing their lives in France alone. Now, it is true that
most of these deaths have been among people skiing off-piste, and that part
of the delight of skiing is its edge. To clamber down to the start of the
Vallée Blanche at Chamonix is thrilling enough for most of us and
a sight more frightening than any of the actual skiing on the run down.
But the body count in the Alps this year is far worse than in a normal season;
presumably, a combination of heavy snowfalls on an unusually unstable base,
plus more thrill-seekers. It is glaringly obvious that the industry needs
to cater for all levels of experience and skill within acceptable levels
of safety.
Next year? At the top of my wish-list, aside from more attention to the
environment and safety, would be for the industry to sell itself as the
healthy option. The great thing about a skiing holiday is that, properly
designed, it can cater for a wide variety of talent. This is supposed to
be about fun. It also offers a cultural experience: how many people would
go to Serbia on a regular trip? But the key thought is that this is one
holiday at the end of which you are healthier than when you began - at least
let's hope so.
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