ARTICLES LABELLED WITH TAG Bulgaria

Market sentiment remains positive across Central and Eastern Europe, according to the RICS Commercial Property Monitor. Strong demand from tenants and investors persists in almost all market segments but the number of signs that some markets have reached their peak continues to grow.

Bulgarian Real Estate Fund received permission for the construction of a new building in the state-owned Science and Technology Park in Sofia.

Bulgarian shopping mall Plovdiv Plaza will reopen its doors in November following an extensive renovation. The shopping centre will have a total retail area of 35,000 sqm.

South African real estate investment trust Hyprop Investments has acquired a hypermarket adjacent to its shopping centre The Mall in the Bulgarian capital for €23 million back in June.

Bulgarian Real Estate Fund plans to invest €33 million in the construction of an office building in state-owned Sofia Tech Park. At first, the project will be financed with the proceeds from the company's planned capital increase, while at a later stage the construction works will be financed through loan financing.

The newest company in the structure of AG Capital, Park Lane Developments is planning the construction of a new office project nearby Paradise Center and Vitosha metro station in Sofia, Bulgaria. The building will have 24,000 sqm of leasable office space. The floors alignment in the new building will be 3,000 sqm and the project is expected to be finished at the end of 2020. The investment is worth €30 million.

Sofia-based Lion's Head Investments, a wholly owned subsidiary of local AG Capital, has asked for the Bulgarian competition regulator’s approval to acquire Megapark business centre in the capital.

Market players still look positively toward the future of Central and Eastern European property markets but they are visibly less buoyant than they were during most of 2017. Results for Bulgaria, Croatia and Hungary are the most positive, while in Romania the picture is rather mixed. All data points to the Czech investment market being in a state close to peaking.

GTC continues its growth strategy and further expands its portfolio in Sofia. The developer and asset manager purchased Mall of Sofia, a prime shopping centre and office tower in Sofia’s Central Business District, seizing opportunity in the growing economy in Bulgaria. The property was formerly owned by Europa Capital.

The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) and Postbank (Bulgaria) will jointly provide €58.3 million (€32 million and €26.3 million, respectively) to help finance the construction of a Marriott hotel in Sofia, the first hotel of the international chain in Bulgaria. The 12-year loan will be extended to I Tower Development JSC, a special-purpose company set-up in Bulgaria. BSTDB acted as arranger of the deal. The operation aims at meeting the growing demand for high-quality business and tourist accommodation and conference facilities in the Bulgarian capital.