One of older houses in portfolio
For prospective property buyers, the beauty and mystique of an exotic locale may seduce, but beyond the poetry of a landscape, there can be many practical complications for buyers like Rachel Gawith, who put down a deposit on a property in Bansko, Bulgaria and wound up engaged in a legal dispute with the agent who sold her the property. Despite this and other setbacks, Gawith has created a substantial Bulgarian portfolio property and currently advises potential investors in Bulgaria about the same difficulties she confronted.
In August of 2004, Gawith heard from London-based Bulgarian Dreams regarding a new property development in Bansko. The agent told Gawith that the property would be located near the main gondola in Bansko and would feature five-star facilities.
After contacting the agent via phone and discussing the property in greater detail, which included requesting floor plans, the agent advised Gawith to expedite her decision regarding a property purchase because there were only a couple of apartments in her price range that remained. This was enough motivation for Gawith to submit a deposit for a two-room apartment. For roughly 1,100 euros per square meter, Gawith fetched 60 square meters of apartment space.
Gawith waited two weeks to receive a contractual agreement from her agent with Bulgarian Dreams, and when the property contract did finally arrive it contained numerous errors, including an omission of a promise made to Gawith by the property developer that one bathroom would be converted into a kitchen and this cost would be absorbed into the already established price of the property. At that point, no management content existed either, according to Gawith.
In October of 2004, Gawith visited her property development in Bansko and encountered a property that was located much further away from the ski lift than initially suggested. The kitchen that was still a bathroom and the anticipated view of the town of Bansko turned out to be a view of the next door block, Gawith says. For the proceeding few months, Gawith says she tried to get answers to questions regarding these discrepancies to no avail. Additionally, Gawith began corresponding with other property owners from the same development and discovered they had the same concerns and unanswered questions as she.
Amidst all the confusion, Gawith and her fellow property owners were informed that they would have to pay to use the spa facilities located in the development even though they were already paying an exorbitant maintenance charge. Gawith says the property was advertised as including five-star facilities, which implied that the spa facilities were included in the cost of the property and this was misleading for prospective buyers.
At this point in her property-buying experience, Gawith says she realized she had made an awful mistake investing in the Bansko apartment property.
To add insult to injury, the developer rescinded its promise to renovate one bathroom into a kitchen area unless Gawith agreed to pay additional costs for the rehab. Of course, Gawith refused to pay these new costs. For recourse, she contacted her agent, who not only did not come to her aid regarding the kitchen renovation, but threatened Gawith with legal action because of her discussion of the purchase price with other property buyers in the same development. Bulgarian Dreams refused to have further contact with Gawith due to her ‘behaviour’
After such a disheartening and fruitless experience, it would have been understandable for Gawith to wash her hands of Bulgaria as a resource for acquiring property, but Gawith resiliently chose to remain loyal to this country. This time, however, she focused on Bulgaria’s countryside areas, feeling safer with purchases of older, cheaper properties.
In May of 2005, Gawith decided to buy an older home in the Stara Zagora region after meeting an agent who ran his own, modest property firm in the region. The agent was seeking to expand his business to British buyers and Gawith seized the opportunity and a property-selling partnership began for Gawith and this agent.
As Gawith traveled throughout the region with clients, showing them desirable properties, she also acquired properties for herself.
One of these property sites was a plot of land in a village close the Balkan mountains in an area world famous for its rose oil production and discovery of Thracian burial tombs. Gawith says there was already a small house situated on the land, but she wanted to build a new, larger home on this lot.
Gawith contracted with a Bulgarian firm called DreamHome to build her dream home. The construction contract was signed and the old home that once stood on the lot where the new house would stand had been demolished by DreamHome. But after many delays and problems Gawith ended up canceling her contract with DreamHome.
For well over a year following her termination of the contract with DreamHome, Gawith endured legal battles with DreamHome. In the end, Gawith lost her case against DreamHome and was stuck with a mountain of legal fees. Gawith says she would not recommend entering the Bulgarian court system to anyone because the system rewards those who are connected with the right people, not those who have evidence favoring their defense. To make matters worse, Gawith says the attorney representing DreamHome sued Gawith for alleged defamation and slander of his character because of a letter she submitted to the Stara Zagora law council that claimed DreamHome’s attorney used ‘bullying tactics’ toward Gawith. Currently, Gawith is appealing this claim, but if she loses the appeal, she could owe roughly 10,000 euros as part of the civil case brought by DreamHome’s attorney and end up with a criminal record in Bulgaria.
After selling properties in the Stara Zagora region for around three and a half years, Gawith says she is now ready for a change of location and is trying to sell her property portfolio and rental business. As an avid skier and snowboarder, her future plans include a potential move to France to be closer to the major ski resorts in Europe.
Gawith currently spends her time giving advice to those who want to invest in Bulgarian property. Her website provides advice for prospective property investors as well as offers a few property listings. After spending nearly half a decade involved in selling and acquiring property in Bulgaria, Gawith has become a niche property advice guru.
Gawith’s property portfolio would be an ideal purchase for someone looking to relocate to sunnier climates and run a holiday letting business. It includes a luxury, 3 bedroom house with outside BBQ area and newly landscaped gardens, 3 further renovated properties in the same village, one of which is already furnished and used as a holiday let, a partly renovated villa suitable for longer term lets to those needing a base in Bulgaria while they find their own property, another villa close to the city which is currently let out on a long term agreement (to be honoured by buyer), five unrenovated older houses and 2 plots of land suitable for building on. Gawith is looking for offers of around 450,000 Euros for the whole portfolio, complete with Bulgarian company, required as a non-Bulgarian for owning land.
If you are interested in purchasing Rachel Gawith’s property portfolio, please visit the website at http://www.thetravelbug.org
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