Case Study
Best friends Vicky McElhinney, teacher and writer, and Nikki Cartmill, restauranteur and property developer, are two friends who decided to one day leave Northern Ireland and head towards the Balkan mountains following a rumour of properties which could be bought at €2,000 each in a country they had never been to. Leaving their husbands behind, they set off and ended up buying not one but two houses each in Bulgaria, and went on to write a book about their adventures. Here is their story.
The BeginningVicky was bored at work when she found a seemingly unbelievable offer of dirt cheap properties in Bulgaria on the internet. Calling her friend Nikki, the pair hopped on a plane to Sofia, leaving their bemused husbands at home. Heading to Veliko Turnovo, the women started house-hunting. Driving through snow-bound countryside, the women describe the scenery as "straight out of a Grimms' Brothers tales.It was in the north central village of Malinovo that the ladies bought houses. Although not the homes they had first seen on the website, they were delighted with the two properties in the hills above the Yantra river. Each property cost €4,100. Nikki opted for a 1930s single-storey, three-room house set back from the road, with two outhouses and a garden. Vicky's was a two-storey 1940s house on the village green. Shaking hands on the village green, they had made their purchases. Although first attracted by the house prices, the ladies soon fell in love with the country too. Says Vicky, "We weren't about to buy if we didn't like the country. Luckily it is magical, so we did." All it took was another trip to set up limited companies and the properties were theirs.
Second HomesOn their next visit, a couple of months later, the women returned to complete the legal formalities and decided to carry on with their spending spree. Buying another house, this time Nikki bought a €14,000 traditional Bulgarian stone-built house in the archtectural reserve and film-set location of 200-year old Staro Stefanavo, a holiday spot for Sofia's rich and famous. Nikki rang her husband on the golf course to tell him the good news. Not to be outdone, Vicky then went home, surfed the internet and bought a 200-year-old cottage in the hamlet of Bulgarene, near Lovech, for €3,000.Having added a wet-room, septic tank, had new flooring installed and old ceilings restored, both Vicky and Nikki adore their new houses right on the Stara Planina, in the Balkans. They stay there with husbands and various friends and relatives forextended stays. Says Nikki, "We have lovely views wherever you look, friendly neighbours and dirt cheap food and wine. The worst bits are the unbearable humidity in August coupled with water being cut off, flies and having to go back to England."Although there are ex-pat communities in nearby villages, the pair try to mix in the immediate community. Says Nikki, "Language is the biggest difficulty for us. But newcomers are made very welcome. We are, after all, great entertainment value." Vicky has had such a good time, in fact, that she has written a book about her experiences, called The Big Bulgarian Adventure, writing under the pseudonym Sue Seddon. Bulgaria is becoming increasingly popular, with more and more Britons looking to buy property abroad. The girls feel the area is great for buying a second home. "It's still really cheap," says Vicky, "and will go up again when buying land is easier." So will they be looking at any more houses? "We'll stop at the two each for now!" comes the answer.
Property PalsThe pair are now Property Pals and use their experience and now extensive local knowledge to hand hold others through what can be a very frustrating purchasing process. Says Nikki, "We have many local contacts such as reliable, honest and thorough builders and a good, helpful translator. We also have a good knowledge of local suppliers, where to eat and shop, entertainment, sightseeing, spas and ski slopes nearby."
Hugo Raymond, Founder of myPropertyPal.com says, "We are delighted to welcome Vicky and Nikki to MyPropertyPal.com to look after inland Bulgaria. They will indeed complement the strong service facility being provided by PropertyPal Budge in the south, and their combined experience ensures MyPropertyPal.com will offer the best Bulgarian information available on the World Wide Web."
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