Getting the keys rarely means the apartment is ready to live in. Much of the new-build stock in Sofia and Bulgaria's other large cities is handed over to the Bulgarian State Standard (БДС) specification: plastered walls, screed floors, pipework and cabling run — but no finished bathroom, no flooring, no doors, no lighting, no kitchen and no furniture.
So the advertised price is only the first half of the sum. After the notary comes a second budget, the one that turns a construction site into a home. It rarely appears in the marketing, but it decides whether the purchase is affordable.
The figures below come from a model published by the SofiaHoods platform on 6 August 2026. They cover a 65 sq m two-room new-build apartment handed over as a shell, at indicative Sofia prices for 2026. The ranges are indicative and depend heavily on the condition in which the developer hands the property over.
| Specification | Indicative total budget | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Frugal | €28,000 – 43,500 | Basic materials, off-the-shelf furniture, standard bathroom, few bespoke elements |
| Good modern standard | €46,000 – 76,700 | Bespoke kitchen and some joinery, quality flooring, integrated appliances, planned lighting |
| Premium | €87,000 – 153,000+ | Designer scheme, high-end materials, premium appliances, fully bespoke furnishing |
Most real projects in the middle category land somewhere around €56,000 – 66,500. These totals include the finishing works, bathroom, kitchen, appliances, furniture, lighting, delivery, installation and the contingency. They exclude the purchase price and the transaction costs.
It is usually the smallest room and often the largest single line. Waterproofing, plumbing, tiling, sanitaryware, taps, cabinetry, lighting and a glass screen all have to fit into a few square metres.
A fully finished bathroom at standard specification runs €7,200 – 12,800. With premium materials it reaches €25,600.
Finishing works, line by line:
| Item | Frugal | Good standard | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bathroom: waterproofing, tiling, sanitaryware, glass | €4,100 – 7,200 | €7,200 – 12,800 | €12,800 – 25,600 |
| Flooring including skirting | €2,000 – 3,600 | €3,600 – 6,100 | €7,700 – 15,300 |
| Walls and ceilings: skim, sand, paint | €2,600 – 4,600 | €4,600 – 7,700 | €8,200 – 14,300 |
| Electrical installation and consumer unit | €1,000 – 2,000 | €2,000 – 3,600 | €4,100 – 7,200 |
| Plumbing for bathroom and kitchen | €770 – 1,800 | €1,800 – 3,100 | €3,100 – 5,100 |
| Internal doors | €1,000 – 2,000 | €2,000 – 3,600 | €4,100 – 7,700 |
| Light fittings and installation | €770 – 1,800 | €2,000 – 4,100 | €5,100 – 12,800 |
| Air conditioning or other heating | €1,300 – 2,600 | €2,600 – 4,600 | €5,100 – 9,200 |
| Preparation, cleaning, snagging, balcony | €1,500 – 3,000 | €3,000 – 5,900 | €6,100 – 11,300 |
| Subtotal | €15,300 – 28,600 | €28,900 – 51,400 | €56,200 – 108,400 |
The estimates assume reasonably level walls and usable screed. Where levelling or reworking of the services is needed, the numbers move up.
With furniture, the kitchen is the decisive choice. A basic off-the-shelf run with freestanding appliances stays within a few thousand euro. A bespoke kitchen with a quality worktop and integrated appliances passes €15,000 without difficulty.
Fitted wardrobes routinely cost more than planned as well. They are not the striking part of an interior, but the bedroom, hallway and living room do not function without them.
| Item | Frugal | Good standard | Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kitchen units | €2,000 – 4,100 | €5,100 – 10,200 | €12,800 – 30,700 |
| Kitchen appliances | €2,000 – 3,600 | €4,100 – 7,700 | €9,200 – 20,500 |
| Living room furniture | €1,500 – 3,100 | €3,600 – 7,700 | €10,200 – 25,600 |
| Bedroom: bed, mattress, wardrobe | €1,500 – 3,600 | €4,100 – 9,200 | €10,200 – 25,600 |
| Hallway and additional storage | €770 – 2,000 | €2,600 – 6,100 | €7,700 – 17,900 |
| Curtains, blinds, rugs, decoration | €770 – 2,000 | €2,600 – 6,100 | €7,700 – 20,500 |
| Washing machine, TV, small appliances | €1,500 – 3,100 | €3,600 – 6,100 | €7,700 – 17,900 |
| Subtotal | €10,200 – 21,500 | €25,600 – 53,200 | €65,400 – 158,500 |
Delivery of materials and furniture is charged separately depending on the floor, whether there is a lift, and whether items have to be carried by hand. Some installation work is billed on its own too. Add an interior designer, technical advice, design changes and repeat visits by trades.
On this model, ancillary services add €3,600 – 10,200 to a frugal project and €12,300 – 26,600 at a good modern standard.
A contingency of at least 10–15% sits on top. It absorbs levelling, moving sockets, repairs to the services and price changes — the things discovered after work starts, not before.
The practical rule: set the bathroom and kitchen budgets first. They carry the most weight and cannot be deferred if the flat is to become habitable.
If a 65 sq m apartment is offered at €2,500 per sq m, the contract price is €162,500. On top of that come €46,000 – 76,700 for a good modern standard.
| Step | Amount | Running total |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase: 65 sq m at €2,500/sq m | €162,500 | €162,500 |
| Finishing and furnishing, good standard | €46,000 – 76,700 | €208,500 – 239,200 |
| Real cost per finished square metre | around €3,200 – 3,700/sq m |
A property advertised at €2,500 per sq m actually costs between €3,200 and €3,700 per sq m once it is finished and furnished.
This is where it bites. Even when the bank finances the purchase, the money for the fit-out and furniture is usually not part of the same loan. The second budget gets covered from savings, a consumer loan, help from family, or by finishing the flat room by room.
It also changes how listings should be compared. A cheaper shell apartment can end up costing more than a finished resale property once the works, the furniture, the time and the risk of overrun are counted. New-build has real advantages — layout, energy performance, common parts, long-term value — but the comparison has to be against the final move-in cost, not the figure in the advert.
If you are running that calculation now, it is worth reading what Act 14, Article 181, Act 15 and Act 16 actually mean — the construction stage determines when the bank releases funds. For an indicative payment, use the mortgage calculator; lending conditions are summarised in our mortgage guide.
Where the flat is bought to let, the fit-out is invested capital, not a separate expense. The real basis for a yield calculation includes the purchase price, transaction costs, the works, furniture, appliances and the months during which the property cannot be let.
In the worked example, an advertised gross yield of 4.4% falls to roughly 3.5% once the full finishing budget is included. The gap widens if the works run late and the flat sits empty.
Premium furnishing rarely produces a proportionally higher rent. Durable flooring, washable paint, reliable appliances, sufficient storage and a functional kitchen pay off better. Materials that are too cheap, on the other hand, mean another refurbishment after the first or second tenant — the saving comes back as a cost, and as months without income.
When a client is looking at a shell apartment, we do not stop at the advertised price. At the viewing we go through the condition it is being handed over in — how level the walls and screed are, which points have been run, what the contract actually says about the finishing works — because that is the difference between the bottom and the top of every range above. We run both budgets together and compare the total against specific finished resale properties in the same area. If only one of the two budgets is funded, we say so before the signature, not after it.
Buying new-build requires two separate budgets. The first is the transaction: price, VAT where applicable, notary and local fees, commission, bank costs, possibly a parking space. The second is moving in: finishing works, bathroom, kitchen, appliances, wardrobes, furniture, lighting, air conditioning, delivery, installation and a 10–15% contingency.
When both are planned, the purchase holds up. When only the purchase price is secured, the flat can stay unusable for months and the shortfall runs into tens of thousands of euro.
If you are choosing between a shell new-build and a finished property and want the sum done properly — call us or come into the office. We will look at the specific apartment and work through both budgets with you.
Finishing and furnishing figures are from a model published by the SofiaHoods platform on 6 August 2026, covering a 60–70 sq m two-room apartment at indicative 2026 prices for Sofia and other large Bulgarian cities. Verified as of September 2026 and indicative only — the actual budget depends on the condition of the property at handover and on the materials chosen.
