The Bulgarian property market has continued to cool sharply: in the third quarter of 2026, 45,312 transactions were recorded in the country, the lowest figure since at least 2005, for which comparable data from the Bulgarian Registry Agency is available. Compared with July–September 2025, when 58,184 transactions were recorded, market volume fell by 22.1 per cent. For the first time since 2010, the number of transactions in the third quarter fell below 50,000.
The decline affected almost the entire country. An increase in the number of transactions was recorded in only six of the 113 towns included in the statistics. These included Blagoevgrad, where sales rose by 19.8 per cent, and Gotse Delchev, with an increase of 11.2 per cent. In Sofia, 7,282 transactions were recorded in the third quarter, which is 21.2 per cent fewer than a year earlier. In the Burgas region, the figure fell by 14.3 per cent to 2,047 transactions. Both markets have effectively returned to 2023 levels. In the Plovdiv region, the number of transactions fell by 23.9 per cent to 3,356, the lowest level since 2013. In Varna, the decline stood at 26.3 per cent, and the number of transactions fell below 3,000 for the first time since 2015. An even sharper decline was recorded in a number of resort and regional markets. In Nessebar, which also includes transactions in Sunny Beach, the number fell by 37 per cent.
In Razlog, which includes the Bansko market, the fall was 30.4 per cent; in Smolyan, 30.7 per cent; and in Chepelare, almost 40 per cent. Between January and September 2026, 129,431 transactions were registered in Bulgaria, which is almost 19 per cent fewer than a year earlier. By way of comparison: during the same period in 2025, 159,338 transactions were concluded; in 2024, 152,316; and in 2023, 153,109.However, the fall in the number of transactions has not yet been accompanied by a fall in prices. According to data from the National Statistical Institute of Bulgaria, in the second quarter of 2026, house prices rose by 15.5 per cent year-on-year and by 4.5 per cent compared with the first quarter. Bulgaria ranked second in the EU in terms of the annual growth rate of house prices.
Consequently, an unusual situation is emerging in the market: the number of transactions is falling sharply, yet prices continue to rise. This may indicate a reduction in the supply of high-quality properties, a high proportion of buyers using their own funds, and price inertia following the significant growth of recent years. Official source: Bulgarian Registry Agency – Property Register Statistics.