Monthly Archives: November 2016

Year 2016 brought a serious demand for office space in Sofia and this has been carried over into the entire 2016, setting a stage for very dynamic office market. The increased demand for office space have continued while new projects for office buildings in Sofia have entered the market. Some of these projects are in already established office locations and they provide office supply in response to the serious demand from the outsourcing companies. The offices with good location in Sofia and smart distribution of the area reach occupancy rates of 90 to 95%.

There is however a slight difference on the office market. In 2015 the newly opened companies were looking for office space of 200 to 300 sq.m, while in 2016 there was a demand for bigger offices in Sofia of 700 to 800 sq.m. The tenants for such office premises in Sofia are companies working in the outsourcing and IT business, as well as companies offering financial intermediation services. In many cases those companies working in Sofia do not serve the Bulgarian market but have clients abroad.

The rental levels of the offices in Sofia city have increased with 4 % on an yearly basis, reaching up to 13 Euro per sq.m for occupying the offices of the highest class A. These are average levels for this type of office buildings in Sofia, which are characterized by convenient location, excellent working conditions, many facilities. Such offices of high class which however do not share such central location can be found for lower rental levels.

In general, Bulgaria remains a very attractive office destination in comparison with the other countries from Eastern Europe. In addition to the strategic location and the attractive rental levels, the country also provides low taxes and professionals with excellent knowledge and rich experience. The rental prices of the offices of class A in Sofia are lower compared to such destinations like Prague, Budapest, Warsaw. Bucharest, Belgrade, Skopje.

Many office buildings in Sofia that were under construction have been completed or are near completion by the end of 2016. At the same time, the increased demand for such offices have let to the start of many new office building projects in Sofia. In the end of 2015 the city had 1.79 million sq.m. of office premises. The large office projects that were completed in the capital of Bulgaria included Capital Fort with its 42 000 sq.m, Brussels Business Center with its two office towers of 9000 sq.m and Trade Center Europe with 8000 sq.m, as well as the SPS Tower featuring another 10 000 sq.m.

The increased demand of the large companies led to the start of many new projects and enlargement of the ones that already existed. Approximately 30 % of these office buildings in Sofia were constructed for own usage or were not large enough to answer to the needs and demand of the large outsourcing companies. The companies that stay behind the increased demand are working in the IT and the outsourcing sphere. These companies already occupy almost three thirds of the rented offices of class A in Sofia. The low levels of supply of this type of offices lead to a slight increase in the rental levels.

Bulgaria keeps its position as a leader of the outsourcing market in Eastern Europe. The rental levels of the offices in the capital Sofia are still lowest compared to the rest of the capitals on the Balkans. Sofia and Bulgaria in general remain very attractive office destination, as the office buildings provided to the outsourcing companies are modern and functional, with great locations and many facilities. Bulgaria not only offers attractive rental prices and strategic location, but it also tempts the companies with lower taxes and perfectly qualified work labor, as well as improved procedures for starting a business.

Since the beginning of 2014 until the final months of 2016, the available office space in the Top 10 of the most sought after office buildings in Sofia have gone from 7.5% to 3.5%. The rental levels have gone up a little bit from 12 to 13 Euro per sq.m. In the next few months many new office projects of excellent quality will be completed in Sofia, attracting the attention of the outsourcing companies. All new projects of office buildings that are starting now in the capital of Bulgaria have been previously coordinated and consulted between the investors and the future tenants.

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The real estate agents are facing an improvement on the office market situation in Sofia in the last couple of years. This means increased demand for offices and reduced number of available offices spaces, as well as increased expenses for the tenant companies and less options on the labor force market. At the same time the companies have higher requirements concerning the Sofia offices they want to move in.

The companies do consider the rental price when they are searching for a new office to relocate and that rental price is the main factor that leads them. However, the companies are now also considering the location of the working area and the quality of the building and the facilities and services offered. Most of the companies who are working in Bulgaria or have outsourced their businesses to Sofia and the other big cities in the country plan to develop and in fact grow with 25 % and more, renting bigger and more spacious offices.