site.bta2026 to Mark End of "Panic" Home Purchases in Bulgaria, Price Growth Rate to Normalize, Analyst Says

This year will mark the end of “panic” home purchases in Bulgaria, with buyers becoming more rational, which will put a stop to the previous double-digit price growth, National Registry for New Constructions and Reconstructions leading analyst Petar Mastikov said in an interview with BTA.

After the peak in housing price increases in Bulgaria in 2024–2025, most real estate market analysts this year forecast price growth of between 5% and 10% compared to 2025, the expert noted. In Sofia, the expected price increase is projected to be in the range of 8–12%, with average prices already reaching EUR 2,487 per sq. m, while in elite boroughs such as Oborishte they reach up to EUR 3,764 per sq. m. Housing prices are also set to rise in Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas, but growth rates will normalize after the significant jumps seen in 2025 (when prices in Burgas rose by nearly 26%). Overall, price increases are expected mainly in newly built housing, particularly in the capital and large cities.

Mastikov pointed out that data from various construction companies show that the increase in construction and installation costs for 2025 reached between 15% and 18%. This trend is expected to continue this year as well, with construction material prices and labour costs likely to rise further at the beginning of the year due to the introduction of the euro. This will remain the main driver behind rising housing prices, the expert added.

In 2026, the trend of predominantly two-room and three-room homes being developed in leading cities — Sofia, Plovdiv, Burgas, Varna, Stara Zagora, Pleven, Ruse, Haskovo, as well as Kazanlak — will continue. Growth is also expected to persist in the holiday property market. Houses remain extremely popular, with smaller settlements around major cities turning into construction sites. Numerous private houses are being launched, as well as larger residential complexes by investment companies.

Preliminary data for 2025 show that the total volume of started construction areas in Bulgaria reached 8.6 million sq. m of gross floor area, marking an increase of 7.5% compared to 2024, Mastikov said. Construction volumes last year were the second-highest in the past 22 years for which market statistics have been kept, with only 2007 recording a higher volume of started buildings, the difference amounting to 1.1 million sq. m, he added.

According to the expert, this growth is due to several key factors — the eurozone, higher household incomes, strong demand, cheap financing and a shortage of high-quality modern housing. Bulgaria’s accession to the eurozone will be one of the strongest economic catalysts for building construction over the next decade, Mastikov believes. In his words, joining the common currency union changes not only the financial environment but also the way investors perceive risk, stability and the country’s prospects. For the construction sector, this means both new opportunities and new challenges, with the overall effect expected to be clearly positive, Mastikov concluded.