Bulgaria building permits: homes approved fall 36.3% in Q3 2026
Bulgaria permitted 8,624 new homes in the third quarter of 2026, 36.3% fewer than a year earlier, while construction actually started on 13.2% more.
The facts
- Bulgaria issued permits for 2,224 residential buildings covering 8,624 dwellings in the third quarter of 2026, the national statistical institute reported on 3 November.
- Permitted dwellings were -36.3% against the third quarter of 2025 and -25.0% against the previous quarter, and permitted floor area fell 22.7% over the year to 1,140,519 square metres.
- Construction started on 1,573 residential buildings with 7,296 dwellings: 13.2% more dwellings than a year earlier, but 18.1% fewer than in the previous quarter.
- Sofia city accounted for 2,196 of the permitted dwellings, ahead of Plovdiv with 1,303, Burgas with 1,013 and Varna with 960.
- Permits for administrative and office buildings fell to 12 buildings, down 25.0% over the year, with floor area 65.9% lower.
What it means for your money
- Permits are the earliest signal of future supply, and they fell 36.3%. Glopra puts Bulgaria's average price at 2,312 dollars per square metre.
- A buyer entering now meets a pipeline draining at the permit stage while starts still rose 13.2%, so near-term and later completions point in opposite directions.
- For an owner already holding in Sofia, 2,196 of the 8,624 permitted dwellings sit in the capital, so new competing supply stays concentrated there.
What to watch
- Permits and starts moved in opposite directions this quarter; the fourth-quarter release will show whether the permit decline reaches the starts figure.
- Non-residential building permits also contracted, with floor area for other buildings 14.1% lower over the year.
- The next quarterly release covers the fourth quarter of 2026.
Sources: National Statistical Institute https://www.nsi.bg/en/press-release/izdadeni-razreshitelni-za-stroej-i-zapochnato-stroitelstvo-9202; National Statistical Institute https://www.nsi.bg/en/file/38728/building_permits_issued_and_construction_started_3q2026.pdf