Agricultural land in Bulgaria costs between 200 and 300 leva/decare for smaller parcels, according to top execs from four of the most active Bulgarian companies in the sector.

Veselin Petrov, executive director in Elana Property Management told Profit.bg that the average price added some 20% in the past year to 200-280 leva.

Larger parcels (over 1,000 decares) are 30% more expensive. “There are plots in the area of Dobrich, for which buyers are paying more than 500 leva/decare,” he added.

Radoslav Manolov, Advance Terrafund REIT executive director, said the average price per decare currently tops 300 leva. In his opinion, the price hike this year will come to 20-30%.

Ognyan Kalev, CEO of Agro Finance REIT said land in parcels of up to 10 decares costs 260-270 leva/decare. For parcels larger than 10 decare the figures can go up to 290-300 leva. “With plots larger than 20 decares the price goes up to 310-320 leva/decare, and for those larger than 50 decares it is a subject of negotiations.”

He also expects a 20-30% increase this year.

Svetla Boyanova, executive director Mel Invest REIT, said that in places with low demand agricultural land costs as low as 180 leva/decare, but otherwise, the average for the country is 250-300 leva.

“In the area of Dobrich, the price can reach 400-450 leva/decare, she also said. Mrs. Boyanova said agricultural land appreciated by some 25-26% last year.