Moving to Bulgaria


A lady called Betty Bradshaw recently wrote this on the Facebook Group "Moving to Bulgaria" and my replies are in italics.

Sorry if this sounds thick... but what is the very first thing we need to do before buying a house in Bulgaria? Is it the visas? Is it buy a house first? We are serious about moving over, but have no clue where to begun our journey.

Dear Beckie Bradshaw, 

You are not being "thick" at all. We all have to start somewhere, when we do something completely new and out of our comfort zone! 

Anyway, the first thing you need to before buying a house in Bulgaria is to read my blog www.bulgariawithnoodles.blogspot.com 

Then you should watch some of Susan Ashwell's lovely videos about Bulgaria on YouTube. (Her series is called "Escape to a simpler place and time.") 

Thirdly, you should reply to the message that I am just about to write to you.

Here is the message (or messages) I wrote to Becky, together with her replies.

Hello! My wife and I bought our first property in Bulgaria about twenty years ago. Yes, it can all be a bit confusing and complicated, this business of moving to another country, but the good news is that lots of Brits have already done this and so there are many people you can ask for help and advice. I am NOT a lawyer, so you really need to discuss the whole visa and residency thing with an English-speaking Bulgarian lawyer. After the disaster called Brexit, things are a bit more difficult, but not impossible.

If you are still wondering whether or not it might be a good idea to move to Bulgaria, then you might like to see a few photos of our country house here.


Not bad for 81,000 euros. In the UK, that would be just enough money to buy you a garage or maybe a garden shed.

Thank you so much for the help.. I am currently applying for a visa and hope to buy a house soon (ish)... Your home is soo beautiful and you are right about the prices of sheds. It's mind blowing how different life is going to be out there. I'm so excited!


There are LOTS of estate agencies in Bulgaria. Some are professional and do a good job. Some of them are dreadful. The important thing to remember is that you should not be in a hurry. There are heaps and heaps of properties for sale, so there is absolutely no hurry. Prices for houses and apartments in large cities have gone up over the last two or three years, but prices for country houses have hardly moved at all. That is my understanding.


DON'T be in a hurry. If there seems to be something that is a bit dodgy or not quite right, then walk away. Oh yes and I do recommend YANTRA HOMES. Even if you do not want to buy a property in the Veliko Tarnovo region, I would still have a look at their website. It will give you a good idea of what sort of prices you might be paying and the kinds of properties available. As well as a country house, we also have an apartment in the city of Veliko Tarnovo (aka VT). We usually spend the summer in the countryside and then move to the city in the winter.

This is the view from the end of the garden of our country house. Quite pretty.


So jealous, but hopefully I'll be over there soon. I have a 5 year plan, but fingers crossed that it won't take half that.

If you are retired (or about to retire), then moving to Bulgaria is quite simple and there will not be a lot of problems getting your lichna carta (residency card). However, working in Bulgaria is not so easy. For a start, salaries in BG are pretty dreadful. Most expats either work online or else they are self-employed. What about your husband? What does he think about moving to Bulgaria?

It's all my husband's idea. I wasn't on board at first, but after seeing it for myself and looking online and speaking to people and seeing what it could bring into our lives, I'm getting more excited each day.

My wife and I have bought three different properties and sold one of them. We are big BG fans! Of course, one of the first things you need to think about is WHERE in Bulgaria you would like to live. Sofia is a lot more expensive than the rest of BG and it is also rather polluted. However, you are going to need things like supermarkets, vets, hospitals, DIY shops etc., so you must be fairly near a decent-sized city. That would be my advice.

My other peice of advice is to leave a COMMENT on this blog, if you have enjoyed it or found it helpful (or maybe even both!) Writing a blog can be a rather dull and lonely pastime, without feedback from your readers.




Comments

  1. Anonymous25 March 2024 at 14:15

    Thank you Simon excellent read,will take note

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. the hippopotamus26 March 2024 at 05:43

      Hooray! Someone has actually written a comment, for once!

      Delete

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