Bulgaria is cementing its lead as an investment property hotspot for skiers and snowboarders looking to own a slice of the slopes. The country’s recent accession in the EU, together with the low prices and plentiful property facilitated by the building boom, are leading many British skiers and snowboarders to leapfrog their traditional favourite ski spots in France, Switzerland and Austria, in favour of Bulgaria’s more modestly priced mountains.

The boom in property development in Bulgaria’s best resorts have meant that brand new ski apartments can be  snapped up  for less than 30K. These low prices, combined with the preventive costs of getting on to the British property ladder, means that many young buyers are choosing Bulgaria for either investment property, a holiday home or a way of generating some extra income through rental returns.

As Bulgaria’s premier ski resort, with the best snow record and longest ski season (mid December to mid may), Bansko has become the most popular location for British property investors to purchase. Previously perceived by some as being a budget ski destination, the $40 million investment in Bansko mean that in terms of size and facilities, the resort is now competing with other more established favourites in Western Europe.

However, it’s not just Bansko that’s big with the Brits; other prominent ski areas such as Borovetz and Pamporovo are also attracting interest. Borovets is Bulgaria’s oldest ski resort which dates back to 1896 and offers pistes up to 2600m above sea level. Pamporovo’s claim to fame comes in the form of its weather, and it’s said to be the sunniest ski resort in Bulgaria.

There are also around a dozen other less well known ski areas in the country, such as Vitosha, Semkovo and Uzana, which are currently more geared towards local weekend skiers rather than the international snow sports market, but these are likely to grow in size in the coming years. The new development around Razlog is getting property investors excited as it will be combining a ski area with an 18 hole PGA golf course just 4km from Bansko, and is likely to attract a lot of interest from British buyers.

Though other European nationals have showed interest in buying property in Bulgaria, the British are leading the charge with an estimated 40,000 Britons now owning property in the country. And it’s not just snow seekers who are looking to buy; the Black Sea beach resorts are also attracting adventurous Brits searching for a Bulgarian property investment with a healthy dose of sun and sea; the most popular places to buy are around the Varna area, in towns such as Kavarna and Albena Beach.

As Bulgaria’s economy and infrastructure continues to develop, it’s likely that it will grow even more popular with the property buying Brits – after all, when you can buy a plush ski apartment, town penthouse or beach villa in Bulgaria for the same price as a conservatory in Britain, it’s not surprising that many are heading to the country in search of eastern property promise.

Elisha Burberry is an online, freelance journalist and keen traveller and watersports enthusiast. Originally from Scotland, she now resides in London.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Elisha_Burberry

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Freeview is a digital tv package that is available to people living in the UK but which is also available to the British expats living in Spain. 

For many years now, British expats have been flocking to the warmer shores of southern Spain in the Mediterranean in order to get away from the damp and dreary weather of the UK. Many go to Spain in order to live there permanently, with many others spending weeks or even months at a time there for their holidays.

Adapting to both the language and cultural differences can be difficult enough, but one thing that expats can find even more frustrating, Is the fact that they are not able to watch the television programmes that they enjoyed most frequently when living in the UK such as BBC1, BBC2, ITV1, Channel 4 and Channel 5. There are also dozens of other channels that are available to view for free including everything from movies and sport, to home shopping and news.

Many fear that their only option is to watch local Spanish television channels, which means that unless they are fluent in Spanish, which is not going to be the most pleasurable of experiences. After all, it’s not much fun watching a film, if you are unable to comprehend what is being said.

What a lot of British expats fail to realise, is that they can watch their favourite UK TV channels for free via free to view television in Spain. This also means that they do not have to subscribe and pay monthly for a satellite package such as Sky.

There are a number of satellite installation companies that are run by expats on the Costa del Sol and other parts of Spain, who can install free to view television in Spain in around an hour.

The installation of a satellite dish and a digital set top box is also required in order to be able to view the freeview service. A small amount of space is normally required to mount the dish and make sure that it is aligned precisely to the correct satellite.

The digital box or digibox as it is often referred is a small box that connects to the cable from the dish to your existing video and television equipment. These are easy to install and in most cases will be provided by your satellite installation and freeview provider.

Once the freeview service is installed, there are no further payments to pay, as no monthly subscription is required in order to view freeview and its associated channels.

So if you do move to Spain, remember that those programmes that you loved so much when living in the UK are still available to you and can make that transition from the UK to Spain that much more comfortable.

By Rob Griggs Published: 8/22/2008

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