"We agreed it verbally" is the most common sentence in renovation disputes. A renovation is a contract for work under Bulgaria's Obligations and Contracts Act — whether it is done by a company or by a single tradesman. A written contract is not a formality: it defines exactly what you ordered, what it costs and what you can demand if it is not done properly. When renovation work in a block needs a permit and what you owe the neighbours is covered in Renovating a flat in a Bulgarian apartment block. Here — the contract itself.
1. The parties
- A company: full name, UIC, registered office, representative. Check it in the Commercial Register — that it exists and is not in liquidation or insolvency.
- An individual: full name and address. ID documents don't need to be photocopied "just in case" — it is enough to check the details.
- The client: you — and if the home is joint marital property, it is good for both spouses to be aware of the contract.
2. The scope: the more detail, the better
The most important part. Describe the scope of work room by room, with quantities where possible: square metres of tiling, linear metres of skirting, number of sockets, plumbing points.
- Attach a bill of quantities — each item with quantity and unit price.
- Specify materials: who supplies them, brand, grade, colour. "Tiles of the client's choice up to X € per m²" is clearer than "tiles".
- If there is a design or sketch, make it an integral part of the contract.
- State what is not included — removing waste, cleaning, stripping out the old.
If you are buying a shell-and-core flat, see also what the second budget costs for a realistic frame before you collect quotes.
3. Price: fixed or by unit rates
- A fixed (lump-sum) price — you know the total, but every addition must be agreed separately.
- Unit rates — you pay for quantities actually done. Under the Act, in that case the amount of the remuneration is determined when the work is accepted.
- Extra work — only with a written addendum or a protocol signed by both sides, priced before work starts. That avoids the "this wasn't in the quote" surprise.
- VAT — state whether the price includes VAT if the contractor is VAT-registered.
4. Deposit and staged payments
Paying in stages is the best protection for both sides.
- The deposit should be reasonable — usually enough to cover initial materials, not the whole price. If you buy the materials yourself, a deposit is hardly needed.
- Stages — for example: rough works, services, tiling, finishing. Each payment after a signed protocol accepting that stage.
- A retention — part of the price (for example the final instalment) is paid after final acceptance and once snags are fixed.
- By bank transfer. That gives you proof of every payment. The Finance Ministry has proposed that construction payments be made by bank only — more in Bank transfer only, no threshold.
5. Deadlines and penalties
- Start and end dates, and for a larger job a stage schedule.
- A late-completion penalty — a percentage of the price per day of delay, with a cap. It keeps discipline and spares you from proving losses.
- When the deadline pauses — for example if materials you supply arrive late.
- A right to terminate for significant delay.
Under the Act, the client may withdraw from the contract even after work has started, but then owes the contractor the costs incurred, the work done and the profit they would have made. So the contract should state expressly when you may terminate without such compensation — for instance after a delay of a set number of days.
6. Warranty
- Set a warranty period for each type of work and what it covers — free repair within a reasonable time.
- Construction and installation works have minimum warranty periods under Ordinance No. 2 — the contract may set longer ones, not shorter. We cover them in Defects in a new-build home.
- Keep the warranty cards for materials and appliances — they carry a separate manufacturer's warranty.
7. Accepting the work
Acceptance has legal consequences, so don't sign on the doorstep.
- Under the Act, the client accepts the work after inspecting it and must raise defects at acceptance. Obvious defects not raised then are harder to claim later.
- Draw up a handover protocol with every snag and a deadline for fixing them. Take photos.
- Check specifically: levels and corners, grout lines, the fall towards the bathroom drain, every socket and switch, leaks, how doors and windows open.
- For services, ask for test reports (for example on the electrical installation) and as-built drawings — where the pipes and cables run.
For defective performance, the Act lets you demand free repair within a suitable time, payment of the cost of repair, or a price reduction, and for significant defects, termination of the contract. As a general rule the claim is time-barred six months after the work is handed over (with special rules for hidden defects in construction), so don't delay.
8. What to do in a dispute
- Document everything. Photos, video, messages, protocols, bank transfers.
- A written notice. Describe the defect, ask for it to be fixed by a specific date and warn of the next steps. Send it so that you have proof of receipt.
- An independent assessment. A technical specialist or expert can describe the defects and the cost of repair — a basis for negotiation and for court.
- Mediation. A faster and cheaper route to agreement with a neutral mediator.
- The consumer route. If the contractor is a business and you are ordering as a private individual, you can complain to the Commission for Consumer Protection and request conciliation.
- Court. If nothing else works — a claim for remedying the defects, a price reduction or repayment, plus the agreed penalty.
Don't stop paying or bring in another contractor before you have documented the state of the work — otherwise it will be hard to prove what was there.
In short
- Always a written contract — with a company or a tradesman.
- Detailed scope, a bill of quantities, materials.
- A deposit sized to materials; staged payments against protocols; a retained final instalment.
- Deadlines, a penalty, a right to terminate.
- A warranty no shorter than the minimum periods; an acceptance protocol listing every snag.
- In a dispute: documents, written notice, expert, mediation, consumer commission, court.
Buying a home you plan to renovate, or want a lawyer to review the contract with your builder? Call us or come into the office.
This is general information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026.
