Understanding the Buying Process

The buying process

The buying process in Bulgaria, is relatively straight forward, but for those of you that do not know the procedure, or the rules/laws of Bulgaria, it may be a something that could put you off the whole idea of moving to Bulgaria.

I have gone through the process in as much detail as I can below, and hopefully you will also see that it is not as difficult as it first looks and sounds. And that you can be the owner of a new property in as little as one day. If there is something that you can not grasp, and need more information, then please get in touch, and I will be happy to go through it with you.

Post Brexit/ jan 2021, the Bulgarian law now states, that any british person buying a house in Bulgaria will need to do so through a ltd company. So this means that first we will need to register a company in your name and then the company will buy the house.

COMPANY SET UP-

There are two ways to do this.....

1. if you have residency in Bulgaria, then the company can be set up straight into your name. costing 600 Leva.

2. If you do not have residency here, then first the company will need to be set up by us. You will pick the name and address of the company. Once the company is set up, then we can sign over the shares of the company to you. This way costs 1200 leva.

What will you need to set up a company?

* A passport, (which will be photocopied for each owner of the company, and the photocopy will be sent in with all the paperwork.)

* A company Name- this is completely up to you. You need to decide, what your company will be called, but in most cases as the company will not be trading and is only for buying the house, people tend not to worry so much. You will need to pick a name that is not used by anyone else. If the name that you want is used by somebody else, we can offer to change it slightly so that it is unique.

*An address for correspondence- I allow my clients to use my address, and then once they have moved and are settled in Bulgaria they can change it to their own address, if they wish. It means that if you are not in the country, all letters will come to me, and you will be kept informed of any bills or problems, that may occur.

Where do we start?

Once we have the details above in place, we will go and meet our lawyer,

* We will hand in the copy of the passport, and give her the information on the company name and address. Or info on you as an individual if you decide to buy it in your personal name (if you are an eu citizen).

They will prepare all the paperwork, and we will be told to come back to the office in an hour. Perfect time for a cup of tea or coffee or a chat about the area, and to answer some of the questions that have been running through your mind.

* When the lawyer has all the papers ready, we will go to the notary office, and sign some papers to say that you agree to open a company and manage the company. You will make a signature specimen in front of the notary and the notary will sign to say that you are who you say you are.

* We then go to the bank and open a business bank account, The bank account will remain dormant, for as long as the company does.

* We will then return to the office, where you will pay for the company set up service (600-1200 leva) and you will order a company stamp (35 Lev) There will be more papers to sign here too.

The lawyer will take all of the documents into the courts, and they will be processed- This does not mean that you can not buy a house, until the paper works are finished. We can still sign for a house with power of attorney or with a preliminary contract and a deposit. Once the company is registered, we will go to Targovishte and collect the papers, with the company registration number, and you will be asked whether you would like the papers and stamp back or for us to keep them here safe, until you arrive.

IF YOU DO NOT HAVE BULGARIAN RESIDENCY, THEN ALL OF THIS CAN BE DONE BEFOREHAND BY OUR TEAM IN OUR NAME. THEN ONCE THE COMPANY IS SET UP, YOU CAN COME AND IT TAKES 10 MINUTES TO SIGN THE SHARES OF THE COMPANY OVER TO YOU.

Buying the house

* The seller will bring all of the documentation on the property into the lawyers office, where we will check that everything is in order

This means:

* The plan/skitser of the house is upto date

* The council tax has been paid upto date

* A new government valuation is ready- Paperwork in Bulgaria should not be older than 6 months, if it is new copies will need to be ordered or old copies stamped to say it is still the same.

* The deeds are present, and the lawyer will check which names are on the deeds, and that each owner is present and agrees to sell and at the same price.

* If all papers are correct, then the seller's papers will be given to the notary office, along with your company and identification papers, so that the notary can prepare the deal to change the deeds into your name. Usually the notary requests one day to prepare the papers.

* Once the notary is ready, the buyers and sellers will go to the notary and sign all the paperwork. If you can not be present or the process as been delayed because the owner didn't have the right papers at the start, then you can give us or the lawyer power of attorney, and we will act on your behalf and sign everything at this stage. You will always have a translator present, and it will be made clear to you exactly what you are signing and what you are buying.

* Once everything is signed, the notary gives all the papers to the courts, government officials etc. We will go back to the notary office, 24hrs later, and collect the papers in your name.

What needs to be done, once the house is signed into your name?

Once the house is signed into your name there are certain things that the new owner is obliged to do....

1. The property wil automatically be declared to the local municipality. All future council tax will be paid by yourself.

2. You need to change the electricity and water into the company name- there is not a deadline on this, but you should get it done early to prevent problems later. we charge 100 Lev or 50 Euros for this. It consists of two trips to the electricity board and one to the water.

3. Every march, you will have to pay the council/property taxes on any property that you own. The bill will be sent in the post to you, and if paid early you will get a 5% discount. You can split the payments over the year, if you decide or pay in one go.