Banks in Bulgaria
If you are seriously intending to buy property in Bulgaria , it's a good idea to open a bank account early on in your visit. This can save you some valuable time, particularly when you have lots of legal matters to attend to during the purchase.
The quality of service offered by banks in Bulgaria varies quite a lot, as do their fee structures. Look for a bank that can offer you:
- Full internet banking (preferably with no monthly costs)
- Low fees (or no fees) for the receipt of foreign currency by electronic transfer
- A current account, that preferably pays interest
- No monthly costs for holding the account
- Low (or no) initial deposit for opening the account
- English speaking tellers / representatives in the bank itself
- Low fees (or no fees) for withdrawing your own money!
Note that when you transfer money from your country to Bulgaria, some banks often charge you for the receipt of that money in your Bulgarian bank account. Now, whilst the majority of us are used to flat fees for bank transfers, in Bulgaria some of the banks charge you a percentage of the amount you are receiving. That is, they do not charge you a fixed fee. So, if you are transferring quite a large sum for the final payment on your property, some banks may quite happily take a percentage of that from you.
You will find it very difficult to find a bank that meets all the criteria above, but it's possible to find banks that meet a good majority of them. ING Bank (www.ing.bg) in Bulgaria, has an excellent internet banking service, you can pay your electricity bills easily by direct debit and they do not charge you for the receipt of funds transferred via an international bank transfer.
It is worth shopping around for the best bank to suit your needs - others you may want to review include CB Allianz Bulgaria, (bank.allianz.bg), Bulbank (www.bulbank.bg), Postbank (www.postbank.bg) and First Investment Bank (www.fibank.bg ).
Top Tip: To avoid being charged for withdrawing cash when you plan to pay a deposit or final payment, set up a bank transfer to the seller instead, which will save you money. Bank transfers tend to have low, fixed fees.
