Getting a small farm house plot of land

Hello Highlandknight,

Many people live a self sufficient lifestyle, growing vegetables and some have animals too. I don't know what your thinking is but if idea is to move here and live off that alone then unless you have another source of income it will be a difficult thing to do.

Out of interest, have you visited Bulgaria before? It can be a bit of a culture shock to some and those that live here find it much like the UK 50 + years ago and that is why it appeals.

Hi and ty for the info. And no i would have money comming in and the old world life is what i am wanting. I like the internet but all the rest big citys and mass everything i can do without. And no not been there yet. But from all i have seen and heard it sounds like what i want. I am making plans to visit in the spring and hope i can find a nice farm house and but one. so can a american buy a house there? I have heard say and then no?

Great! I'm sure you will be happy in Bulgaria in that case.

What you have been told is technically correct. Non EU citizens can't own real estate in their own name, the way to get around this is to register a non trading Bulgarian Ltd Company, and this can own assets. It's fairly straightforward to do and not expensive, however, every year the Ltd company would need to file a nil tax return (assuming it's non trading) and a financial report, this varies in cost but can be around 100 euros. This is something many had to do prior to Bulgaria joining the EU and still many have their companies and file accounts each year.

hummm so i have to file for a LTD that has no purpose and the house is the reason for the LTD lol ok. so that is the 20% tax thing i read about then right? so do i pay each year or just the 1 time for the ltd?

You pay to register the Ltd Company one time, but the tax return/financial report is done annually, there will be no tax to pay assuming the company is only set up for the purpose of owning real estate.

Awww ok cool ty Bray

Hi highlandknight,

Welcome to https://www.expat.com!

Thank you for this introduction. I created a new topic as from your post on the Bulgaria forum. Do not hesitate to ask more questions here.

actually there's no 20 % tax aimed at companies, this the VAT which is paid by the end user, no matter wheter natural parson or a company.

and if your company is involved in some kind of business activity, then you will pay 10 % corporate tax

that's it. The rest is what you pay to your accountant.

be careful, there are a lot of pitfalls. I own 5 houses and made a mistake on my first one. The village you buy in is the most important thing. Make sure there are other foreigners you can talk to in the village, they'll let you know the spirit of the town. I avoid villages with more than 5% gypy( had all my appliances stolen from 2 houses from gypsys(my neighbours, that the police finally caught) never got my property back .You will also start to feel uncomfortable about the way they look at you and come around to find out what you have. Get a good roof, having to replace the roof is very expensive. Local unskilled labour is generally 20-30 leva/day. If they know your new they will ask double or triple also get a Bulgarian friend to be your power of attorney to buy the house, you'll get it for 50-200% cheaper. Every house I've bought has been through a Bulgarian power of attorney, no one knew a foreigner owned the property till I showed up.Get a Bulgarian friend to recommend labourers at local rate. Remember as a foreigner everyone is trying to rip you off. good luck, also get a great view and locate in a village
near a resort area ie. banscko and close ,15km from a small city ,15-20,000 people. For all the services.

I can agree with the experiences Mr Nice has listed regards pitfalls, I read it now knowing these such issues but anyone reading this unaware may feel it can't be as bad as you say, sadly it can and often is.
Do not be put off though persevere in any purchase, like anything you'd invest in a little background research is always going to be beneficial.
And then just turn off your UK head and forget how you expect or know how to be treated, this is now a different way of life, a totally different culture, I do not know hand on heart who you can trust completely, rather than pin point stereotypes, people who have a lower income will see £££ signs in a foreigner it is unfortunate, we all find our feet eventually.
I have have been ripped off, and burgled bet hey I also had an opportunity to buy a fantastic farm house in the country and the village has now 1% more English in it me!
Don't be put off just be savvy, good luck.
Steve.

Hi highland knight,
My wife and I have a smallholding 35k north of Veliko Tarnavo, we have done the self sufficiency thing for the past eight year's and have really enjoyed it, we have kept pig's, goat's, chickens, rabbit's and duck's, we have about 3'500 sq meters of land for growing veg etc, there are various fruit trees on the property and of course walnut trees.
What size of property are you looking for? What area? what is your budget?

Chainjer

north of VT is not a particularly nice area. lots of gypos rather flat , also a very bad return on investment especially because that area over the past 5 years has gotten a very bad rep with the expats. I know 2 guys who have done partial renos on their property and finally realized they couldn't live there anymore . There going to have to take a substantial loss to sell. The only people who can get sucked into that area are newbys.

Mr Nice guy?,
lots of gypsies every where, whether you go north of Tarnavo or south, to the coast or to the mountains, every village will have a gypsy community of some sort, some make the villages undesirable to live in some dont, not all people are bad, many gypsies are hard working and contribute to the community they live in, lots supply cheap labour that ex pat's rely on to do their dirty work.
Flat!!! who cares? if you want hilly look to the hills, what's the problem with flat, if you want flat then that's  there too,
Ex pats?  mix if you want to if you dont then dont. We can all shut our gate's and barricade ourselves in from the outside world if we want.
Those of us that renovated house's did it so because the properties were cheap to start with knowing that we would probably never get back the money spent when we came to sell, but enjoyed our new homes all the same, it never was the place to buy property for investment look at the estate agents web sites at all the villa's the ex ex pat's cant sell.
We enjoy living where we live and I'm sure Bansko is a wonderful place also, especially with all those empty apartment's no one want's.

The Smolyan district has less than 1% gypos and their scared. House breaking in the south is a very serious crime and occurs rarely. My neighbours told me there's no need to lock my doors. I have been in Bularia almost full time for 7 years and I have driven to and photographed every region. I'm sorry your trapped north of VT , I just feel I have to be honest with the newby. There are areas where you can make substantial returns on your property if you know what your doing. My 2 properties in the south are worth 4 times what they cost me(all costs in) in just 2 years and in the ski season I get 700 euros a week for each house. It's one of the best investments I've ever made. The key is to follow my formula that I previously outlined. Near Pamporovo is great because you can rent in winter and summer. The black sea is a summer rent only and prices are generally to high. I'm presently looking for a place south west of Sofia in a village near A1. You can be 60 km out of Sofia ,but if your near the A1 you can get in Sofia's center in half an hour. Elevation, view, minimal gypo, sound roof and pleasant neighbours, Bulgarian power of attorney to buy for you and a Bulgaria to get you local labour are your major concerns. I guarantee you if you follow my rules you make good profit.

We have been here since May having bought last year.  We bought a renovation project, with just under 3000m2 of land, a well and some disintegrating out houses at a really ridiculously cheap price.  We could see all the possibilities of the property and the land whilst some were aghast at our adventurousness.  We aim to be as self sufficient as possible but that won't happen till next year.  We haven't regretted a single moment.  The Bulgarians are wonderful people with a propensity to stare!  It is cheap to live here if you have a UK income but it is possible to live on a very limited budget if you need to and still have a marvellous life.  I would recommend bringing over electrical/electronics ( inc white goods) from UK even if used - likewise furniture and bedding.  Without being or committing an "ism" the quality in BG is not the same or is variable.  The traditional furniture, that is being replaced with MDF and all things slick and shiny, is of a fantastic quality if you can get hold of it.

On a practical note try joining a local Facebook group in an area you are considering.  You will be able to glean some really good information at ground level of people actually living here.   An excellent example is The Pavlikeni Post in the Veliko Tarnovo area of North Central Greece.  It is a real snap shot of life here, albeit from an ex pat focus.  There will be platforms to other groups via this one - everything from BGBay, Buy Swap and Sell BG, and of course other area groups. 

Once you've found an area come and visit and look at villages and houses.  There are a plethora of house sites but RightMove Bulgaria seems to have a wide selection across Bulgaria.  From there you can investigate agents who use it as an advertising platform.  Agents fees can be variable to with some agents charging Euro for fees so make sure you clear this up before you start looking with them.

Good luck it is a wonderful life here!

Touchee!

How I enjoyed your post Corter. So good to read about real life.

Houses are not meant to be investments but homes. If its investments you want then buy gold or some other useless and unnecessary stuff. Homes are for people to live in, to keep the infrastructure of villages intact, to keep schools open. Holiday homes and investment houses have only negative impact on rural life. Buy half a village and leave the houses empty and you will will destroy the entire community.