The purchase of a two-room apartment in Sofia pays off in about 15 years, according to Industry Watch’s calculations for the fourth quarter of 2007. Only three months before, i.e. the third quarter of last year, a similar investment paid off in 13 years and at the end of 2006 the repayment period was 10 to 11 years.
Residential sale prices increase at a quicker pace than rentals, so accounting for the slowdown of returns on these investments, the think-tank comments.
Rental levels cannot increase faster than the growth of average disposable income, Industry Watch analysts say, and they foresee that it will be one of the propellers for residential sale price correction.
Housing will slow down its appreciation rate this year – not forecast to exceed 15-20 per cent. The slight increase of mortgage loan rates and boosted supply of newly built units are among the reasons for the slight deceleration, experts said.
