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I found this topic on the Internet but it was originally in Bulgarian but you can make it out so have a read its really interesting

Why England do not buy properties in Bulgaria

In most cases, foreign property owners have themselves to blame for lost money

The first reason is the crisis. The second is that Bulgaria went bad name as a place where British and Irish people are scammed. In forums and in the Western press circulated to the complaints of people who lost money in the country. Such stories as "
horror stories"
. In details not vnikva and that buyers are innocent victims, it seems obvious, because our country is known for corruption and iniquity.

Causes

But I already four years working on these same Englishmen and not see it that way. It is true that Bulgaria is corrupt, but the reasons for lost investments are in themselves buyers. Recently, consult one of them what his views are to regain the one hundred and fifty thousand euro. My conclusion was that they had none. Having heard this, he said literally the following: "
Bulgarian legislation is bad, because it protects buyers by themselves."
A similar idea is in sharp conflict with the Roman maxim that the law is sighted, and not sleeping. In other words, if the buyer is not vigilant, is his own fault that he lost money. And these are the same Romans, whose successors in law are both we and the British.
This man had done anything reckless. Had given a proxy to a stranger to pull its deposits from fully and to spend the money as it sees fit. And not only was not considered any collateral, but even contract was not concluded. He was very surprised when he explained that the attorney only grants rights but does not create obligations. So this same Englishman I find no fault in their actions and was convinced that the reason we lost money in Bulgaria.
Another was convinced that he has bought a house and when he realized that it would receive non-built space, wanted to sue the seller. The contract, however, who stood in his signature, was clearly written that only purchased the land, not building. And that contract was written in their native language, but apparently this guy was not bothered to read it.
One woman complained for months on the forums about what a terrible place is Bulgaria, contacted me to advise her how to return the money. After I read the contract which it was concluded, and found no wrongdoing. It happened precisely what was written in black and white.

Mentality

Westerners come from a different world where everything is settled, calm and where the government protect them from dangers such as small children. Once you give money, it is understood that they will receive what is given them. When people buy apartments there, they worry whether they will be not deceived, but what will be the color of bathroom tiles. You can not lose them, for them is so obvious that they never think about the issue of preventive measures. In Bulgaria, these people are like farm animals removed from farm and thrown into the jungle. They are not accustomed to looking and when they hit just can not understand where they come.

Agents

To this should be added that the West people do not do everything yourself and pay for professionals from the field to do the job. In these real estate professionals are called "
agents"
, so their first job, when they decide to buy in Bulgaria is to raise that term in the search engine together with the name of our country. Immediately leaving many companies are called "
agents"
. They can not imagine a world without such people and I see a familiar word, decide they have found what they want. Their assumption that there are agents in Bulgaria is confirmed. If it does not like to go deep into details and explore how it actually is the issue. Prefer to view color pictures instead of reading thick books. Once something confirmed their expectations, you can not help but be so! English in Bulgaria come to buy property with the mood of tourists who are seated to order in a restaurant rather than serious investors. So they expect the menu instead of the book's instructions.

Differences

Under the Commercial Code, however, the country has firms, not agents. The difference is substantial. The mediator does not represent the parties and shall not be liable if one has not fulfilled its obligations to the other. The mediator only them "
svatosva. The deal is between the buyer and seller of the property. He takes money from both sides and thus protect the interest of neither one nor the other. In England, the agent is paid only on one side and he is responsible if its too expensive to sell property or if it lost money in other ways. Therefore, Westerners who have found the Internet entrepreneur who calls himself "
agent"
are left trustingly in his hands. For them, the story ends. They pay him and therefore no need to think about anything.
Englishmen go even further in its stupidity. They rely on the firm erroneously called "
agent"
to them and choose a lawyer. So instead of an independent and competent counsel, they appear to be the most illiterate lawyer who in some cases not even a lawyer. But even is it necessarily loyal to the firm which he found a job, not the client who is. Customers are changing, the firm remains. Customer is a fee, the firm - many fees. Therefore, those dependent on lawyers do what they want the mediator. Collateral no avail, and contracts are concluded in the most rapid and easy manner, which in turn means that the shuffle.

varnagirl wrote:

and perhaps its time to admit that Bulgaria has shot itself in the foot....there has been so much sh*te come out in Bulgaria in the last 9 / 10 yrs...the corruption .the rip offs ,the greed of not only the everyday bulgarians but the developers , the suicedes of brits that lost everything , the constant fight for a fair deal in all things ,the stupid bearocricy ( no i cant spell ! ).....shall i go on .., dont think so ....Bulgaria could and should be a wonderful place to live...and it is for many ...but for others its turned into a nightmare...and thats the kind of publicity it has been getting for a few years now ...grand for a holiday , maybe....but to buy for long term ...there are so many more countries that can offer much more .. plus a lot of the reasons that have been given on this thread ...its had its day......they have basically blown it !!..

Good one varnagirl, I think you had a few people in mind when you posted this, and don't worry about the spelling, I know what you meant
:: ::

I think Fruitlover hit the nail on the head when she said we are all different. We certainly are and I think this topic has shown this to be true. If you choose to live up a mountain for the privacy and view why should you expect to have a road which is open all year with no potholes which actually happen because of the huge temperature ranges. Bulgaria is a poor country and people have survived and become hard because of the domination and climate they have endured over the years. There is a lot to understand before you have the right to complain.
Lets not get into the comparisons with Britain or other countries where it is not cheap to live but still there are the same problems although maybe not so high in profile. It is personal choice to come to Bulgaria to live, but it is certainly true as I have said before, that Bulgaria has suffered from so much bad publicity that people are no longer willing to risk their life savings to buy here. It is down to money in the end and what people choose to do with it. In spite of the recession there are still people willing to buy abroad and I recently read that the 'cash rich' are already lining up to buy property in France and Spain which some poor Brit is having to sell at a massive loss. Up to 50% in some cases. Its probably true then that people are choosing other countries rather than taking a risk with backward Bulgaria.
It is very striking the difference between, JB's and VG's posts and mine. Vive la difference and maybe I am just a very lucky person that I have not suffered significant rip offs or scams like some. However, maybe the fact that all our worldly goods arrived in a friend's transit van and I didn't have a shiny 4x4 outside or a pool put in as part of a basic renovation gave the clue that there was no use trying to get money out of us. Right from the start we made friendships slowly and normally as we would anywhere else.
Just to annoy Johnbaz, I can assure everyone that Greece had every scam in the book going but it didn't put people off buying. Many Brits complained about the same things but they stayed because a lively expat society quickly sprang up on all the islands. Not many managed to find work there either but young women often married Greeks and older people found the climate more forgiving. Bulgarian expat societies are largely fragmented around the Bulgaria with most living down south near the coast. As we all know, Bulgaria is making the same mistakes as Spain with holiday apartment building and selling and it will be years before all the attendant problems will be solved.
It just seems to me that people are not sophisticated enough to understand all the sales hype when buying property - whether its an off-plan apartment or a tumbledown village house. They are not in the business of warning you about the downsides unless you ask the question. Then they won't give a straightforward answer. I know this because I have made mistakes myself in this regard but I don't blame anyone else but learnt from the experience which I try to pass on.

That's what I heard about the coast . . . "
Don't buy in the new resorts . . the local Mafia resent foreigners muscling in on their turf . . will retaliate. . . etc etc."


Many of those in the rural villages say what a wonderful life it is, how glad they are that they made the move, how kind the locals are. And of course, if you do your own renovating the workmanship is entirely under your control.

I lived in a coastal town in the UK, the council was what you might call a Rogues Gallery. In the course of my work I heard one of them threaten a local electrician asking for payment for his work done many months previously "
If you don't stop nattering me I'm in a position to get both your legs broken"
. A thoroughly nasty piece of work and he wasn't the only one, it was all graft. Start looking at who can get building permissions and who can't in many districts around Britain, and you'll find countless cans of worms. There is bullying and intimidation always going on.

In the street where I've lived 5 years I'm still an outsider to half the neighbours, who don't speak to me because I was born 40 miles away (in the same county mind!) so I don't 'belong' here because my accent's a bit different. In the Highlands we were the english B - - - - - - s, the despised White Settlers, a native told my husband nastily to his face "
You shouldn't have got this job, it should have gone to a local person' as no doubt it would if one had bothered to apply. As a postie there I was bullied by a few English haters (who had no idea what I'm like as a person) reporting misdeliveries that I certainly hadn't made and trying various other ways to get me sacked off the job. Never mind that none of them was prepared to get up at 5.00 a.m. to do it themselves (because they liked to be out late boozing) and if I didn't they'd have had to have someone else they didn't know to deliver their mail.

In the end I resigned because my manager said I'd have to take the "
Misdelivery Training"
again because of a customer complaint, even though we both knew it was a lie and he was venting unfounded spite against me. These were not the native Highlanders mind, these were Scots who had moved to the village from different areas themselves! The real natives were courteous and welcoming, and very sorry to lose me as their postie, but what should have been an enjoyable job was ruined by the senseless hate and vindictiveness of the few. If that Royal Mail manager had been a bit more supportive of his staff and told the customer to stop causing trouble and pick his mail up at the Post Office, justice would have been done. But it was a case of "
The customer is always right"
- even when he's a lying bully who has no idea what kind of person his victim really is and merely hates them because they were born somewhere different from himself.

I'm not the suicidal type but if I were there was certainly enough going on there to drive me to it. Instead I expanded my gardening work, which I love better, looking after the gardens of people who appreciated my talent and gave me carte blanche to do what I liked - "
just make it look nice, we don't mind what you do"
- and payed me to thoroughly enjoy myself! For me, no matter what you empty out of my cup it will always be half full and more, no matter what it going on around me. I'm really sorry that some people have had truly horrible experiences in Bulgaria, however I'm a believer that life presents us with the lessons we need to learn, and if we duck them and avoid the lesson we will be presented with similar situations again and again until we make whatever changes we need to make to ourselves in order to advance. But it's taken me a long while to achieve this degree of understanding.

Fruitlover i have read your post with interest and your idea of Bulgaria in comparison to England is so far of the mark . In Bulgaria i you have money you can get away with murder , money is king here . My partner is Bulgarian and that's how i know i mix with them , if you are English you have no idea what goes on , Bulgarians that where in power in communist times are still in power today . And the top criminals now are from special forces of the communist era , what do you think happened to them when they joined Europe . These people would cut your legs off not just break them . Workmanship under your control how do you work that one out , where do you find a skilled person in a Bulgarian village ? . The ones with real skills dont work in Bulgaria would you work for the money they get if you could get a job in Europe ? . People like to get married build a home and have children and build a future , if you are a young Bulgarian your only options are to leave , and million do . In 50 year time Bulgaria will be a wonderful country at the moment its not , i love it with its faults because for me it is idyllic . But then i dont have to dive in a bin to feed my family , or chop wood at 70 i take my hat of to these village people , i couldn't do it . The Mafia are all over Bulgaria not just in Sunny beach .

Lets not forget that this is only the opinion of each individual and it doesn't put any real value on what is said here ? in other words this is how you see it and not necessarily how it is for all. There are plenty in Bulgaria who will all have different views and will contradict what is said here so please respect what others are saying and see it for what it is?

Thank you for your last remark Admin. A forum is for all people and all points of view. It should not get too personal. Much of what Johnbaz is certainly true, but all Bulgarians do not share this view just as all Brits do not share his. I do try to see all points of view and would never be so arrogant as to say that anyone should make the decisions I have. I am well aware that I have been very lucky.
The point of this topic is why are Brits not buying in Bulgaria? It is a puzzle when people are still buying in other countries (apparently!) It is of course due to money being tight in this awful recession which is hitting worldwide, but life goes on and there is always someone with cash. It must therefore be down to bad publicity for Bulgaria which seemed to happen very quickly. I really don't think this is down to people choosing to retire abroad but down to people who actually bought for quick investment under the guise of a holiday home or even permanent living. Having renovated then decided to 'flip' their house and move on as seen on TV. That did not happen and won't for many years. These are the disillusioned ones who have quickly rubbished Bulgaria and helped speed the property crash.
A local Bulgarian is very interested in buying our home. He knows how much we paid and how much we have spent. He has seen inside and it is very useful for his (illegal) goat business he still operates in the village. However, he will only pay in levs minimally above what we originally paid even though no houses in our village would sell for less than this amount unrenovated. Bulgarians sell in euros and buy in levas! Well we are fortunate that we only want to sell to move to another property which was to be for my partner's pension but we realise that it is costly to upkeep two properties and difficult to keep the land under control so we decided to move. Its not an absolute necessity so the bargaining goes on!!!
Interestingly, in spite of all the properties on the market we have had 2 agents round asking to put our house on their website. I can't see the sense in this because it has been with one excellent agent we bought through for 2 years and if they can't sell it who can?

There has been some excellent posts on this topic and many have come straight from the heart. Of course we all buy in a country for many different reasons and it cannot be assumed that we want to move to BG for the same reason that somebody else has. With respect to being worldly and knowing what goes on in another country and the constant rip offs that await foreigners arriving green from the UK, that appears to happen in any country in which you go to live, we lived in a sleepy hollow in the depths of Surrey and basically knew nothing about cons and scams that awaited us in Asia Minor!!!

I did have some insight into the workings of what you might call "
the other side"
when I bought a car hire company in Croydon whilst I was operating a stretch limousine company. Unbeknown to me my "
controller"
of the Croydon company was a close friend of the Krays and in conversation one day mentioned that somebody owed me £300. He offered to get the money for me through his friend "
Bunny"
- I asked who Bunny was and he informed me that Bunny collected money for the Krays. His full name was "
Bunny Harris"
of course!! In the words of Rod my controller, Bunny would make a visit to the person who owed me money and if the money was not forthcoming on the first occasion he would relieve the person of one of his ears and on the second occasion he would chop the other one off!! I didn't take Rod up on his offer and let the whole matter rest there.

When Annette and I have told friends that we are moving to BG their immediate reaction has always been "
it's bloody cold there in the Winter"
and "
what about the mafia"
- "
we hear they are all over Bulgaria."
Our reaction to these remarks are "
we don't mind the cold so much, so that will be alright."
On the question of the mafia we don't know anything, but hope that because we would live in a rural part of Bulgaria, or on the edge of a village, we would have no problem. Other friends have said that "
they need Elliot Ness there to sort things out."


We feel sure that we would enjoy the culture and the Bulgarian people, but we still have an open mind on where we want to go and live.

OMG all this talk of Mafia. Has anyone met someone that is in the Mafia? We see a lot of big black 4x4's but if you look closely they are all leased and mostly driven by young men who with a good puff of wind would blow over .

Then there is the talk of being ripped off. You just call a plumber in the UK and see how much you pay. We called our one out in BG a little while ago and he brought me a bottle of wine and said sorry for the problems. In the UK I would be charged at least 50 quid as soon as I put the phone down.

Bulgaria is a place where the winter is winter and the summer is summer.

Yes I get fed up with people going through the waste bins and leaving rubbish strewn all over the place but if I catch them I tell them. So now they do it in the dark [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] But even with the waste disposal its the same as in the UK, once a fortnight maybe 3 weeks sometimes.

The real reason for lack of interest from the Brits is lack of funds. Plus if it doesn't work out there are no hand outs here as there are in the UK. There is one Bulgarian I know who is waiting for his 'Papers' for entry into the UK he thinks he will get a thousand pounds a week from the state in the UK. Now that says it all doesn't it

I deal in facts not pie in the sky . Strange that i share my opinions on Bulgaria with the EEU why did they withhold grants to Bulgaria again ? . If you think corruption is just in big towns think again , Oldun you did say this guy had a illegal goat herd so you have the start of the problem it just gets bigger , and if you think buying a pile of bricks in Bulgaria for three grand will put you on the property ladder well i am sorry it wont . And to top it all what was Boiko Borisov job 30 years ago ? . There is more to Bulgaria than village life look at the people in power . The other reason people are not buying is there is a glut of English property for sale a cheap price and they cant sell it , just give it away half price .

johnbaz wrote:

I deal in facts not pie in the sky .

and, there are ways and means of doing so. Treating every other ex-pat in Bulgaria as if they are idiots is not a method I endorse.

People are free to their own opinion (as are you), but being married to a Bulgarian doesn't give you carte blanche to believe you know better than everybody else.

If you don't start posting with more tolerance and respect of other members, then I'm afraid your account will be suspended. I have spoken to Admin and every other Moderator and they are in unanimous agreement.

have to agree, people are entitled to their opinions, there are many different reasons why the uk dont buy in bulgaria as we have seen on this interesting topic, interesting too that johnbaz always appears on the good topics and attempts to disrupt them, not for much longer it appears.

Chris wrote:

johnbaz wrote:

I deal in facts not pie in the sky .

and, there are ways and means of doing so. Treating every other ex-pat in Bulgaria as if they are idiots is not a method I endorse.

People are free to their own opinion (as are you), but being married to a Bulgarian doesn't give you carte blanche to believe you know better than everybody else.

If you don't start posting with more tolerance and respect of other members, then I'm afraid your account will be suspended. I have spoken to Admin and every other Moderator and they are in unanimous agreement.

Totally agree with Chris. Forums are about sharing and gaining knowledge. We can only gain this info if people continue to read and post and have respect for others feelings.

Chris wrote:

johnbaz wrote:

I deal in facts not pie in the sky .

and, there are ways and means of doing so. Treating every other ex-pat in Bulgaria as if they are idiots is not a method I endorse.

People are free to their own opinion (as are you), but being married to a Bulgarian doesn't give you carte blanche to believe you know better than everybody else.

If you don't start posting with more tolerance and respect of other members, then I'm afraid your account will be suspended. I have spoken to Admin and every other Moderator and they are in unanimous agreement.

I have to agree here on this, you (Johnbaz) must have more respect for your fellow members.

Thank you Chris, and yes John consider this your one and only warning. As Chris has pointed out please be more tolerant of others and post with respect to others.

I'm not going to argue with you Johnbaz. I am under no illusion about our 'illegal' goat herd. I am also aware of certain villagers who had positions of power under Communism. We are not stupid 'pie in the sky aging hippies' and have our own ways of dealing with situations arising. So far we are ahead but under no illusions about village life but what is the use of harping on about the downsides? Enough has been said about the positives and much of life is what you make it. Reading Itchyfeet's last post is a good example. Mafia is an all emcompassing term freely bandied about and can range from the 'weedy youth' playing at being a big man in his shaded big Mercedes to real business Mafia who might indeed cut off an ear here in Bulgaria and everything in between. The word 'Mafia' actually means 'family' which is good in that everyone has to stick together and help each other out. However in the Mafia it also means there is a payback time which might not be so pleasant. Its doubtful if you will ever meet this big Mafia in a small village.
I'm glad I live on my positive planet and seem to be happy overcoming some of the s...t that has happened to me and anyone who wants to join me is welcome.