Seaside apartment in installments: Bulgaria or Romania — what you sign and when you become the owner
Your own seaside apartment in installments — in a completed building, under a notarized contract and without a bank loan.
If you pay by construction stages in Bulgaria, until the notarial deed you hold only a preliminary contract; in Constanța about €33,000 gets you in — a 30% down payment and the agency commission; the sale-purchase contract is notarized, the building is completed, you are the owner registered in the carte funciară, and the balance is about €1,900 a month for 36 months, interest-free, paid to the apartment’s owner.
The window is open now: as of 09.10.2026 our real estate agency Armonia has more than 100 apartments in completed buildings on its books. Write to us — within 1 business day we will send you 3–5 apartments for your budget free of charge, with the down payment and monthly payment worked out; and if you need a status in the EU, we will build the apartment into your path to a residence permit in Romania through your own company.
In short. Installment purchases of a seaside apartment in Bulgaria and in Romania rest on different documents. In Bulgaria, when you pay by construction stages, all you hold until the notarial deed is a preliminary contract, and ownership passes with the notarial deed (Obligations and Contracts Act, Art. 18 and 19). Under Alliance’s support terms as of 14.10.2026, an apartment of about €100,000 in a completed building in Constanța is bought under a notarized sale-purchase contract with a 30% down payment, and you are the owner registered in the carte funciară; the balance is 36 interest-free payments to the owner, about €1,900 each.
What do you sign when you buy an apartment in Bulgaria in installments by construction stages?
Until there is a notarial deed, you sign a preliminary contract in writing (Obligations and Contracts Act — ZZD, Art. 19(1)): it does not yet transfer ownership of the apartment — ownership passes only with the notarial deed (Art. 18).
A preliminary contract is a promise to conclude the final contract: it sets out the essential terms of the future deal, and either party can ask a court to have it concluded (Art. 19(2) and (3)).
Where your building stands now is shown by 4 construction documents (Ordinance No. 3 of 31.07.2003 and the Spatial Development Act — ZUT):
Act 14 — acceptance of the structure: the load-bearing structure is accepted and finishing works are allowed.
Act 15 — readiness for acceptance: the builder hands the building over to the developer.
Protocol 16 — fitness for use; for buildings of categories 1–3 it is drawn up by the State Acceptance Commission (ZUT, Art. 177).
Use permit or certificate of commissioning — the building is put into operation (ZUT, Art. 177); until then the building may not be used (Art. 178).
When do you become the owner of a seaside apartment — in Bulgaria and in Romania?
In Bulgaria — with the notarial deed (ZZD, Art. 18); in Romania — under a notarized sale-purchase contract (Romanian Civil Code, Art. 1244), and you are the owner registered in the carte funciară.
The carte funciară is Romania’s land book, the state register of rights to real estate; the registration is requested by the notary who certified the contract, and it protects your right against third parties (Law 7/1996). A comparison by documents:
Building: Bulgaria — an apartment may be sold once the shell of the building is finished (“grub stroezh”), before it is put into operation (ZUT, Art. 181(2)); Romania — we select apartments only in completed buildings.
Contract: Bulgaria — a preliminary contract until the notarial deed; Romania — a notarized sale-purchase contract with a 30% down payment.
Ownership: Bulgaria — with the notarial deed; Romania — with registration in the carte funciară.
Payments: Bulgaria — on a schedule of construction stages, if the contract says so; Romania — the balance over 36 months, interest-free, to the apartment’s owner.
The seller’s legal mortgage is a charge on the apartment in the seller’s favor for the unpaid part of the price (Civil Code, Art. 2386(1)): it stays in place until the last payment, while the apartment is already yours.
How much does a seaside apartment in installments cost in Constanța, and what down payment do you need?
For an apartment of about €100,000 in a completed building in Constanța, you need about €33,000 to get in — the 30% down payment and the agency commission — and you pay the balance to the owner at about €1,900 a month for 36 months, interest-free.
Owner financing means paying the balance of the price directly to the seller on the schedule set in the notarized contract, with no bank and no interest. You don’t need a bank loan: the bank checks the source of funds before the deposit. The calculation for an apartment of about €100,000:
30% down payment — about €30,000 including notary fees and tax.
Agency commission 3% — about €3,000.
Monthly payment — about €1,900 for 36 months, interest-free.
At an average price of €2,020 per m², and €2,257 in new buildings (imobiliare.ro index, September 2026), that is about 45–50 m². In the European Union, the combination of a completed building, a 30% down payment and installments without a bank is rare.
A calculation for your budget — free. Write to us: within 1 business day we will send 3–5 apartments in completed buildings and work out the down payment and monthly payment for each.
How does buying a seaside apartment in installments in Romania work — step by step?
The purchase takes 6 steps, and we handle each one: a selection of 3–5 apartments within 1 business day → a check of the funds and documents before the deposit → a notarized contract with a 30% down payment → registration in the carte funciară, you are the owner → the seller’s legal mortgage until the last payment → 36 interest-free months of payments to the owner.
You choose how to take part — in person, by power of attorney, or through Alliance’s management company under the client’s power of attorney; we put together the source-of-funds package to the bank’s requirements.
After the deal, letting the apartment is handled by the management company. How owner financing works is explained in “An apartment in the EU in installments without a bank”.
You signed a preliminary contract in Bulgaria with payments by construction stages: what now?
Before your next payment, we check the documents of your Bulgarian purchase in 4 steps and work out which 30% down payment in a completed building in Constanța your budget covers:
Contract — whether only a preliminary contract has been signed or already a notarial deed (ZZD, Art. 18 and 19).
Building permit — whether it has been issued (ZUT, Art. 148) and who owns the land or the right to build.
Stage — which construction document has already been signed (Act 14, Act 15 or Protocol 16) and which stage the next payment is tied to.
Budget — how much has already been paid and which 30% down payment in a completed building in Constanța the remaining money covers.
The legal assessment of the Bulgarian contract is given by a lawyer qualified in Bulgarian law — we prepare the questions for them. If your situation is different, we cover that too:
Your money is sitting in an account — the sum becomes a 30% down payment, and you have your own seaside apartment in a completed building.
You have been renting for years — instead of rent, you pay the owner for your own apartment, 36 months interest-free.
You bought an apartment in Romania for a status but without a structure — we check the documents and add what is missing: a company, rental income, an employment contract.
Signed a preliminary contract? Write to us. We will review the documents free of charge and send a selection of apartments in completed buildings for your budget.
How does Alliance Consulting support the purchase and build the apartment into the path to a residence permit in Romania?
Alliance Consulting has been working in Romania for 4 years, and every deal runs under a contract: the timeline, amount and working procedure are set out in advance, and the company’s licenses are publicly available on the website.
Alliance is responsible for strategy, the bank, financial monitoring and coordination; all documents are prepared by a lawyer licensed in the EU, and the accounting by audit firms. Armonia shows the properties. Alliance protects your money and builds the structure.
For Ukrainian citizens under temporary protection, extended until 4 March 2028 (EU Council Decision 2026/1912), the path to a residence permit in Romania is “four elements and a result”: an SRL company, an apartment owned by the company, official rental income, an employment contract in your own company — and the IGI permit. The purchase alone does not give you a residence permit.
The whole path takes about 4 months, registering the SRL about a month and €1,300; details are in “Residence permit in Romania for Ukrainians without relocating”. You need to come once — to file the dossier, with a company specialist at your side. The decision is made by IGI; we assemble the complete dossier before filing.
How do you get a selection of seaside apartments in installments for your budget?
Start with a free selection: within 1 business day we will send 3–5 apartments in completed buildings for your amount, each with the 30% down payment and the monthly payment. Viewings are in person or by video; the deal is under a contract.
If you live in another EU country, the purchase procedure without citizenship is described in “An apartment in the EU for a Ukrainian”, and seaside prices are compared in “Buying an apartment in Bulgaria or in Romania”.
As of 09.10.2026, Armonia has more than 100 apartments in completed buildings on its books. Write to us — the selection is free and places you under no obligation.
Questions and answers
What does Act 16 mean when you buy an apartment in Bulgaria?
Act 16 is the protocol on the building’s fitness for use under form 16 of Ordinance No. 3 of 31.07.2003; for buildings of categories 1–3 it is signed by the State Acceptance Commission. On its basis a use permit is issued (ZUT, Art. 177), and only after the building is put into operation may it be used (Art. 178). In Constanța we select only completed buildings.
Do you need a bank loan to buy a seaside apartment in installments in Constanța?
No, the installments are granted by the apartment’s owner: a 30% down payment under a notarized contract, then about €1,900 a month for 36 months, interest-free, for an apartment of about €100,000. The bank checks the source of funds before the deposit, and we put together the package to its requirements. Settlement with the seller is secured by the seller’s legal mortgage until the last payment.
Can I buy an apartment in Constanța in installments if I live in another EU country?
Yes, you don’t have to travel for the deal: you can take part in person, by power of attorney, or through Alliance’s management company under the client’s power of attorney. Viewings are by video, we put together the source-of-funds package, and the management company handles letting the apartment. If you need a residence permit in Romania, we build the apartment into “four elements and a result” — about 4 months.
Sources
Codul civil (Legea nr. 287/2009), Art. 1244, 2386 — 17.07.2009, as currently in force; Portal Legislativ
Закон за задълженията и договорите, чл. 18, 19 — as currently in force, checked on 13.10.2026; Ministry of Justice of Bulgaria
Наредба № 3 от 31.07.2003 г. за съставяне на актове и протоколи по време на строителството, чл. 7 — as amended, State Gazette No. 56 of 11.07.2017; Ministry of Regional Development of Bulgaria
Закон за устройство на територията, чл. 148, 177, 178, 181 — as supplemented, State Gazette No. 47 of 10.06.2025; Ministry of Regional Development of Bulgaria
Legea nr. 7/1996 a cadastrului și a publicității imobiliare, republicată — as currently in force; Portal Legislativ
Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/1912 — 30.07.2026, in force from 05.08.2026; EUR-Lex
Author: Sergey Valentinovich Kononov, head of Alliance Consulting. Published: 18.10.2026. Updated: 18.10.2026.
Checked as of 14.10.2026. The legal points, amounts and timelines are current as of that date; the page is updated if they change.
Sergey Valentinovich Kononov is the head of the consulting company Alliance Consulting (Constanța, Năvodari). He has more than 30 years of management experience; the company has run a licensed practice in Romania for four years and supports clients from the first consultation to receiving their documents. The company’s licenses and documents are publicly available on the website.