site.btaTotal Value of Investment Deals in Bulgaria in 2024 Exceeds EUR 380 Million, Survey Shows

The total value of investment transactions in Bulgaria in 2024 exceeds EUR 380 million, according to a Colliers study on the investment property market in Bulgaria in the second half of 2024, obtained on Thursday by BTA. Over 75% of this value was realized in the second half of the year. More than half of this volume is due to office transactions.

The distribution of the remaining investment in 2024 by sector is as follows: 19% is industrial and logistics space, followed by hotels (17%) and retail space (14%). Transactions in income-generating assets dominate with a share of 51%. The remainder were purchases for own use (37%) and speculative property transactions (12%). 

The tendency for local investors to be more active on the Bulgarian market continues, according to the survey. The share of local buyers has been steadily increasing since 2020. In the past year, they were behind 80% of the investment volume. The rates of return for prime properties remained unchanged at 7.75% for office and retail space and 7.50% for industrial and logistics properties. 

Bulgaria has seen satisfactory growth in investment volume against the backdrop of a recovering market in Central and Eastern Europe, the company said. The current year 2025 is expected to see good activity with levels close to the traditional levels of the last five years. The main challenge remains the availability of quality investment product. In this context, investors will increasingly look for ESG-compliant projects and owners of obsolete buildings will seek to improve and modernize their properties to remain competitive in the market.

The limited number of international and institutional investors, according to Colliers, will continue to be a valid trend in 2025. The expectation is that Bulgaria's accession to the Schengen area and its inclusion as a full member of the Agreement, as well as the introduction of the euro, are prerequisites for foreign investors to increase their interest in the local market.

Local commercial banks have resisted the increase in interest rates in Europe in recent years by keeping theirs at lower values. In this context, the investment market in 2025 is expected to continue to operate under the same conditions. Green projects are expected to continue to receive more favourable financing conditions.