Vitosha Park Complex Sofia

[elvisjayeel]

elvisjayeel

Hi everyone,

Have just found this site, really good to make contact with other Vitosha owners. I have a one bed in Orchidea - still waiting for Act 16 though and getting frustrated. Does anyone know if any apartments are being rented out yet - I wonder if they have the Act 16 but just haven't told anyone?

I have gone with Simeonovo and their furniture package and rental agreement more for an easy life than anything although time will tell if that is the right decision.

I bought a 1 bed in Bansko 3 years ago which I furnished independently - this was cheaper but time consuming.

What is better about Vitosha is that there is a company there willing to run everything for you - not always the case elsewhere. It might cost but there is an element of peace of mind. The other advantage is that you get 5%pa of the cost of the apartment - a better deal now perhaps that rents have gone down overall?

My number is 07515 254326 if anyone wants a chat.

Regards

John

 

[Diz]

I also signed up to the in house rental package and really glad now that i did !!!
I have also had the paperwork regarding the habitation permit weeks ago.

 

[elvisjayeel]

I also signed up to the in house rental package and really glad now that i did !!!
I have also had the paperwork regarding the habitation permit weeks ago.

Is that right then that your 5% payment starts from the date you received your habitation permit? I think the payment is made on 1st May but proportionate to the date the Act 16 is granted. Is that how you see it?

 

[brendyb]

hi john,

brendan here . was just wondering about their rental package. how much are they offering monthly for the apartments. i have a two bed in the lilia house. i furnished the apartment myself so perhaps they will not take on the rental of it now.

regards brendan.

 

[Vpark]

Utility Connections

Hi,

I have just found this chat room. I have an apartment in Magnolia block & cannot get a definitive date from the developer for the connection of utilities. Is anyone else connected yet?

Have furnished via developer on the basis that it was less hassle & thought probably only a saving of 1,000 euros to be had by shopping around.

Given the late completion of Act 15 & the compensation clause in the Contract, I would be interested to know if anyone has agreed a suitable figure.

In answer to question posed in earlier post regarding the guaranteed rental, my understanding is that it does not commence until the following are in place:

1. utilities connected
2. insurance in place
3. management charges paid
4. deposit paid against maintenance & repair paid

I would be pleased to hear of anyone else' s experiences - good & bad as there seems to be a vacuum of reliable information.

Colin

 

[Diz]

I have been informed by my Bulgarian Solicitor that the rental contract comes into effect with the issue of the Habitation permit (Act 16) which I had back in July.
I also paid my Management and deposit for maintenance & repair at the same time then !.

 

[Diz]

I should mention that you had to get your furniture pack throught them to take up the rental package

 

[elvisjayeel]

That is my take on it as well - you must take their furniture package to get into the rental agreement but whether they would waiver on that I don't know.

I have found on the web some apartments available for rent at Vitosha Park but whether they are privately owned rentals I do not know. It would be interesting to find if they are renting out any of ours where we think we are still waiting for Act 16!

Has anyone actually been told they have Act 16 for their apartment?

John

 

[Vpark]

Act 16

That is my take on it as well - you must take their furniture package to get into the rental agreement but whether they would waiver on that I don't know.

I have found on the web some apartments available for rent at Vitosha Park but whether they are privately owned rentals I do not know. It would be interesting to find if they are renting out any of ours where we think we are still waiting for Act 16!

Has anyone actually been told they have Act 16 for their apartment?

John

John,

I have Act 16 for apartment in Magnolia. This was dated Sept 24th 2009. I just can't get a date for the water & electricity connections

Regards

Colin

 

[Ashcon]

act 16

I have Act 16 for apartment in Magnolia. This was dated Sept 24th 2009. I just can't get a date for the water & electricity connections

If you have act 16 then you must have water & electricity as this is what act 16 is: You just cant have one without the other !

Act 16 or”habitation certificate” is the formal certificate issued by the municipality audit commission. The latter checks if all the documents conform to the Bulgarian construction legislation as well as if the building is properly connected to the electricity, sewerage and water suppler. It checks if the premises are secure and suitable for living.

John I would not be surprised at all in BG if your place was rented out without you knowing as this is very common not just with the developers but also with some letting agents

 

[Investment]

Orchidea

Hi all,
Came across this. I visited in August and there and viewed apt block and area. have article 16 but awaiting confirmation on water/electricty although have only just transferred deposit for them. Agree its prob already set up but waiting for funds to confirm. have paid the maintenance fee as I just want to pay my dues, exit the relationship, and work with 3rd party on property mgt/renting but the fee is outrageous of 600 euro plus per apt and one which I will challenge next year. I met a good few rental agencies over there and the message was realism needs to come home on rent yields. Will have to drop to whatever the market will pay and will have to prob do a mix of short term/long term depending on demand. There are A LOT of empty apts in Sofia and a lot of them are in centre so need to be competitve. The developers are attempting to target the workers in nearby business park through a shuttle bus service and long term there are plans to have a train station in area. Also plans to develop the ski lift which is literally next door (although bit of eye sore unfinished place in front and a few other apt blocks beside us too). Property mgt co. I am dealing with claim to have a list of 30 names waiting to view but not so sure about that. I agree with above - although we are all very worried I think these developers are not the worst - they will finish the place and their offices are on site. Some of the things are a bit unsatisfactory but they have not left the place unfinished which a lot of developers throughout the country have done. Long term I think this will come good. Key for now is to get rent income no matter how small! Lets stay in touch on issues. Knowledge is key..

 

[Vpark]

Utilities

Good news on the Utility front, received following e mail from developer on Thursday.

We are pleased to inform you that we already have all of the water and electric meters installed. The most important thing for the proper work of the electric grid has been made and right now we are in position of switching on of the permanent electricity. The electric post will start effectively operating any time. The procedure for opening individual utility accounts had been started. We hope that the relevant institutions will prepare and issue needed document as soon as possible.

Regards

Colin

 

[Vpark]

Rights of Way & penalties for late completion

All owners of properties at Vitosha Park should be aware of the following which we have just received from our solicitors:

Further to the information we all received by the developer Simeonovo
residential park Ltd about the issuing of the Permit for use for all
buildings in Vitosha park complex, we checked the provided documentation
and permissions they sent us during the last weeks.
As we found out some clauses in the permits of use, we made
our own research and further examination of the documents. We also
required additional papers to be submitted by the developer in order to
be more precise in our final statement to you as our client.
The first meeting that we had with the seller was supposed to be a
discussion not only regarding the penalties they owe you for the late
completion of the project, but also about the specific conditions
stipulated in the permits for the entering the buildings into
exploitation. As we have already informed you, the seller was not
inclined to pay
the due penalties as per the contract, but
they suggested a compensation amounting to half of the maintenance fee
and only for those clients who have paid their previous installments on
time.
Still, the other question which we raised on the meeting regarding the
permits of use hasn't been solved yet.
Basically the situation is as follows:
In the Permit for use issued by the Municipality of Sofia - construction
control department is pointed out that the building shall be entered into
exploitation only till the Contract from 30.08.2006 and the annex to it
dated 02.11.2007, signed between the seller and the company owing a
neighboring land estate is in force. These contract and annex are
concluded in relation to the access to the complex Vitosha park because
up to now there is no other way to reach it apart from passing through
the neighboring plot owned by a company named “Vajeni liniii”LTD.
Further to this in 2006 the seller has signed a contract for
establishment of “right to pass” thorough the plot of “Vajeni
liniii”LTD. This right is established explicitly in the name of the
seller and is for a period of two years /since 01.08.2006/ for the
time of performance of construction works. The seller is obliged to pay
a monthly compensation to “Vajeni liniii”LTD
As per the contract after expiration of the above
term as well as upon delay in payment of the agreed compensation or upon
completion of construction works, the contract shall be terminated.
On 02.11.2007 the annex stated above is signed for prolonging of
the contractual period of efficiency till the Sofia municipality council
establishes a permanent right to pass through another neighboring plot
/not the one owned by “Vajeni liniii”LTD/ in the name of the seller. The
parties have also agreed that the contract won't be terminated upon
completion of the complex.
We find the above situation very important for the future use of the
complex and therefore demanded
both the contract and the annex to submitted to us for examination.
Still we consider it hides some risks for you as a future
owner of an apartment in the complex in the following aspects:
the right to pass through the estate is established in favour of the
seller and not in favour of the individual owners of properties in
Vitosha park;
provided that the seller stops paying the agreed price to “Vajeni
liniii”LTD, the contract shall be deemed as terminated and the permit
for use won't be in force any more.

The issues stated above are concerning the rights of all
buyers in Vitosha park and the seller is the one who should offer an
appropriate solution in short terms. The steps that they announced to be
undertaken are that they have entered into the Municipality all
documents necessary for the establishment of permanent right to pass
through the other neighboring plot
Still, they can not point a deadline up to which this will happen.

Has anyone else faired better with compensation??

Regards

Colin

 

[raymondchew]

Rental

Hello INVESTMENT,

I am talking with Guy at Orpheus Interiors [ MD of company and based in the UK] and they are currently talking to two management/rental companies that they have narrowed down and have confidence in. Orpheus will furnish the apartment with hardwood furniture and leather settee for about Eur 7500 and the other company will take over the letting side. Anyone with dealings with Orpheus currently or in the past?

The impression I got from them is that there are a lot of mid to low quality apartments available to let to Sofia, bit insufficient high end units on the market. Even then, they were talking of approx EUR400 per month for higher end units.

My solicitors in Bulgaria cautioned me about the validity and enforcability of guaranteed rentals are there were many instances of company not paying up or failing to meet their commitment. Personally, I am at a lost as the guarantee scheme wil offer a higher return [ am I right that payment will be made at the end of agreement?] or an assured [ hopefully] monthly payment through a private leting. Any body with experience in letting aparments out there? Would like to hear from you.

Raymond

 

[Ashcon]

Hi raymondchew,

I think they are trying a new tactic with the insufficient high end units !! maybe that is reflected in the €7,500 price tag for a furniture pack, you can get hardwood furniture and leather settees fitted with most furniture packs and they are not that price.

Guaranteed rental has in the past been a total waste of time and very few owners actually get anything close to the promised return so I would listen to your lawyer on that one.

In Vitosha it is very hard to rent anything in due to the fact that there are no services there as yet, it is very much on the outskirts of Sofia.
I would be more inclined to use a rental company who has already proven their services rather than some company someone else has just found to look after my investment.

Just my opinion

 

[raymondchew]

Hello Ashcon,

Tried looking up the company you used to furnish your apartments but could not find it. Could you please provide me with info on the contact person and, if possible, a link to their website.

How do you purpose to let out your units?

Raymond

 

[Ashcon]

Vitosha Park

hi raymondchew,

You can contact her on 359 888 187 419 the company is bg-interiors just google the name they come up on the first page of all the search engines

Ash

 

[ivotanev]

Hello! I am the Director of BG Surveyor and we have inspected about 15 apartments onsite Vitosha Park. We offer a comprehenssive service including 2 inspection plus a 15 minute DVD walk of the apartment and the surroundings posted to the client. If anyone is interested, please PM here or call +359 888 865 735 or visit www(dot)bg-surveyor(dot)com. We are also able to offer insurance through a well established international insurance company as well as rental services through a real estate broker.
Good luck to all owners!

Ivo Tanev

 

[tommyg]

vitosha park

Hello,
I have just found this website and joined up. I am Irish, from Donegal and we have bough a 1 bed in Magnolia. I have not paid any management or utility fees yet as I want to make sure the complex is up and running as a properly finished development and not an ongoing building site. For example I think the pool and all other leisure facilities need to be completed. Any comments?

Tommyg

 

[brendyb]

vitosha park

Hello,
I have just found this website and joined up. I am Irish, from Donegal and we have bough a 1 bed in Magnolia. I have not paid any management or utility fees yet as I want to make sure the complex is up and running as a properly finished development and not an ongoing building site. For example I think the pool and all other leisure facilities need to be completed. Any comments?

Tommyg

hi tommy,

brendan bonner from dungloe but living in wexford. have bought a two bed there also in the lilia house. was over there in august an the place is eventually taking place. some ground work still to be done but most of the apartments are finished. im furnished and ready to rent but no joy yet. ill be in donegal for the christmas holidays if you want to meet for a chat . contact me on 087 6306406.

regards brendan.