Construction

The majority of newly-built blocks of apartments in Bulgaria are solid brick structures. The foundation of the building comprises a carcass of solid reinforced concrete, and the exterior and partition walls are built from bricks. The thickness of the interior walls is 15 cm plus a layer of machine-laid plaster. The thickness of the external walls is 25 cm plus a layer of 5 more centimeters of thermal insulation from expanded polystyrene plates. On top of the insulation is placed a reinforcement mesh, after which the walls are finished with plaster, painted or panelled with wood and stone.

If the roof of a building is designed as flat, it is covered with a bituminous or polymeric material. Often, however, following the traditional Bulgarian style, the builders perform pitched roofs and cover them with red roof tiles.

The construction of a building is completed quite fast. For example, a turnkey five-storey block of 20 apartments is finished for a period of 9-10 months. In the construction stage, the buyer can introduce

minor changes in the planning and choose individually the finishing materials. In the high season, the construction in the resort areas at the Bulgarian seaside is prohibited (approximately from 15 May to 15 October).

As for communications, it is worth mentioning that the central hot water supply is available only in some of the major cities. In most apartments the supply of hot water is provided through individual, electric-powered water heating outfits, called “boilers” in Bulgaria. Central heating is also available only in major cities and mainly in municipal buildings. Predominantly, the heating solution in apartments is the installation of air conditioners and convection heaters. For instance, the air conditioner allows for the heating of the apartment in the winter season and its cooling in the hot summer days.

In accordance with the Bulgarian State Standards (BDS), the following warranty periods are in effect for construction (they are agreed by the developer and the contractor, but these periods may not be less than those stipulated by BDS):

1. For all types of completed building structures and facilities: 10 years.
2. For hydro-, thermal and sound insulation works: from 3 to 5 years depending on the environment.
3. For all types of construction, assembly, finishing works and for the indoor communications of the building: 5 years.
4. For machines and mechanisms installed in the building: 5 years.

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