Price of Agricultural Land in Bulgaria Almost Doubled in Five Years – Eurostat

Sofia - The price of agricultural land in Bulgaria has almost doubled in a five year period, shows a Eurostat analysis on the price and rent of agricultural land in the EU in 2016.

A hectare of agricultural land in Bulgaria cost an average of 2,100 euro in 2011, compared to almost 4,000 euro in 2016, Eurostat's data show. The highest price of agricultural land in Bulgaria was registered in the Northeast, where a hectare was selling at almost 6,000 euro in 2016, compared to 2,800 euro five years earlier.

Prices remain high in the North-central region as well, where a hectare averaged 4,600 euro in 2016, compared to 2,300 euro in 2011.

Agricultural land in the Northwest was trading at around 3,800 per hectare in 2016, compared to 2,200 euro in 2011. Prices in the Southeast have risen from 1,400 euro to 3,600 euro per hectare between 2011 and 2016.

Agricultural land in the Southwest has cheapened a little from 1,190 per hectare in 2011 to 1,166 euro per hectare in 2016.

The rental price of agricultural land in Bulgaria has increased on average of over 60 per cent within the five year period - from 153 euro per hectare in 2011 to 225 euro per hectare in 2016.

The Northeast once again tops the price chart with average rental price of 327 euro per hectare. The Southwest offered the cheapest agricultural rental price in 2016 at an average of 112 euro per hectare, Eurostat reports.

The Netherlands had the most expensive purchase price of one hectare of arable land in the EU in 2016, at an average of 63,000 euro. The highest price increase of arable land between 2011 and 2016 was reported in the Czech Republic (triple), Estonia, Latvia and Hungary (double). Arable land was  cheapest in Romania in 2016 at an average of 2,000 euro per hectare.

Source: BTA Daily News, 24 March 2018