Archived Articles

Simeon Mitropolitski is a Canadian analyst, of Bulgarian origin, and a former syndicated columnist with the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA). He is the author of several hundred articles dealing with hot political and economic topics, both national and international.

He was part of the first group of Bulgarian intellectuals and students that began the opposition movement that finally put an end to the communist regime in this country in 1989, and in 1996-1997 participated in international observation teams during the elections in several Balkan countries - Romania, Albania and Bulgaria.

In 2002 Simeon and his family moved from Bulgaria to Canada where they live now in Montreal, province of Quebec. Simeon is a Master of Political Science from McGill University and a B.A. of Political Science and History.

Global Real Estate Project
News Index

Directories
  Int'l Realty
  US Realty

To buy or to rent in Europe for centuries hasn't been a matter of financial preferences. In England for example for centuries there were two main social classes - the superior class of landlords and the inferior class of tenants - free (not slave) peasants without their own land (the only true source of permanent income). In France the French revolution of 1789 was the cornerstone that made possible for millions of farmers to have their own piece of land. The question of turning farmers from tenants into owners was one of the driving forces behind many major social upheavals in Europe in 19th and 20th centuries - Russian Revolution, national movements in the Balkans, in Central Europe to mention a few.

Thus we see that in Europe the concept that to be an owner is something "good" and to be a tenant is equal to "bad" has very deep historical roots that have nothing to do with the pure financial considerations*. Let's take an example from our modern world. In Europe there is a large portion of population owning a second residence. In some countries it can pass over the level of one third of all households. Why? Maybe because such investments are considered to be "good"? Of course not, if you live in a house for 1 or 2 months annually how could you expect to take profits from it during your lifetime? Then why are these huge investments made by individuals? This is because they aren't considered to be investments at all. It's a sign of prestige to have a villa for your summer vacation, a symbol of noblesse so to say. The only positive thing your can expect in financial terms out if this is to resell your villa to someone else on a higher price. It may happen but almost nobody thinks about this when buying or building the second residence.

Public mentality has changed in Europe in the recent years. Now the financial considerations are the top priority for the most newly created households when deciding to rent or to buy a property. This is a real revolution in societies where owners were always considered to be superior class. Even more important is the fact that this revolution wasn't imported, it grew up from within Europe itself. To buy a house is the same as to buy shares or to put your savings into gold or jewelry. The first thought isn't whether this is ethically "right" or "wrong" but whether this is financially sound.

So we see that Europeans start to look at the different economic phases searching for signs how and when exactly to invest. Looking in the recent years it's now obvious that the home buying in 1995-1998 was a "good" investment given the price increase in most European countries between 1998 and 2001. But will this trends hold on in the next years? Is it still better to buy or is healthier to resell and to rent waiting for the residential market to start rising again? That is the big question. Experts are divided and everyone expects more news on the general economic trends before making assessments. But one thing is certain - the public mentality has changed. Buying vs. renting - it's already a matter of financial choice.

-------
* - Even today most banking institutions in Europe look with different eye on the credit applicants of individuals with large real estate.

--------------------

See also the directory of companies providing real estate services in, and general real estate information of Europe.