Christie's International returns to the Bulgarian market

The Bulgarian company for luxury residential properties Unique Estates will be the official representative for Bulgaria of Christie's International Real Estate. In that way, the international auction house Christie's International, in its division dealing with real estate, returns after a nearly 8-year absence in Bulgaria.

The partnership agreement was signed on Wednesday in front of journalists by Unique Estates managing partner Vesela Ilieva and Helena Moyas de Forton, managing director of Christie’s International for Europe.

Christie's stepped into the Bulgarian market for the first time in 2007 also as a partner of Unique Estates (ed. note – that was the year when peak prices on the country’s housing market were recorded - a similar situation we’re experiencing this year). In 2017 however, its activities were "frozen" only to be resumed today. According to Vesela Ilieva, the previous contract was aimed at supporting Unique Estates to establish itself on the market.

Our brand needed recognition back then. We needed someone to show us how it’s done. After we froze the contract, we invested a lot in our team and the company's development," says Ilieva.

According to her, today, luxury property buyers need this type of service.

Christie's International Real Estate – a profile

The activities of Christie's International Real Estate cover 60 countries on six continents. The company has 900 offices worldwide and 10 thousand agents from 106 real estate agencies. Its remarkable successes on the world stage are expressed in sales worth more than 470 billion euros in the last five years and over 12 thousand active luxury properties for sale with a total value of over 44 billion euros.

The international company connects property buyers and sellers worldwide with offices in key markets such as New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, London, Paris, Rome, Bangkok, Dubai, the Mediterranean and the Caribbean.

The Christie's International Real Estate brand offers an unrivaled selection of properties worldwide and is distinguished by achieving record sales. It is available for membership by invitation only and is not just a collection of real estate agencies – it is an elite community of exceptional professionals," commented Helena Moyas de Forton.

According to her, among the company's notable deals for 2024 are a home on Lake Tahoe in Nevada, USA, built by casino magnate Steve Wynn, and subsequently sold for a record 59 million euros; a property in Palm Beach, Florida, worth 142 million euros; and a mansion on the south coast of England worth 36 million euros.

Christie's International Real Estate is currently offering a duplex penthouse in Central Park Tower, New York, for sale for 143 million euros.

We have been following the market in Bulgaria for some time because of the growing luxury segment, as well as because of the country's strategic location as a link between Europe and Asia. With the addition of Unique Estates, our network now includes 47 partners in Europe, including seven in Eastern Europe – Albania, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Serbia, Greece and Slovakia,” added Helena Moyas de Forton.

Unique Estates’ market observations show that international clients are showing interest in trophy properties with historical value and cultural heritage in Sofia.

Through this partnership, we aim to help develop the investment climate and strengthen ties with the global community at a high level. Bulgaria has the potential for significant investments that combine tradition and innovation, and attract new buyers and long-time connoisseurs of quality properties," commented Vesela Ilieva.

What is the essence of this partnership? 

The partnership between the two companies means that Bulgarian properties from the luxury segment will now be offered on Christie’s international partner network, which operates in 60 countries around the world. In addition to real estate, Bulgarian citizens will also be able to offer valuable works of art, jewelry, furniture and other items for Christie's to offer at auctions.

In addition, if there are valuables in a home for sale, they will be valued and offered to the auction house as well. 

However, not all properties that are part of the Bulgarian company's portfolio will be offered in Christie's channels.

These will be houses over 1 million euros and apartments over 800,000 euros. Regarding rents, properties with monthly rents over 3,500 euros will be included," explained Svetoslava Georgieva, managing director at Unique Estates.

As of now, there are already 14 properties that have been uploaded to the platform of the international company.

From the conversation, it became clear that many boutique properties, the so-called trophy homes, are awaiting bids. But that’s not in the traditional auction house sense. The price proposals will be submitted in sealed envelopes. Vesela Ilieva specified that this is done for an extremely small number of properties. 

Translated by Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov