Real estate · Bulgaria

Real estate in Stara Zagora: homes and areas

A city rebuilt on a grid of straight streets after the Russo-Turkish War, with Roman remains, a university and a big energy industry nearby.

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Living in Stara Zagora

Stara Zagora is the capital of its province and lies on the Upper Thracian Plain in south-central Bulgaria, at the foot of the Sarnena Sredna Gora hills. The city was burned in 1877 during the Russo-Turkish War and rebuilt from 1879 to a plan by the Czech engineer Lubor Bayer, which gives the centre its grid of straight streets.

The Maritsa Iztok lignite mines and power plants in the east of the province, which produce a large share of Bulgaria's electricity, are a major employer for the area. The city also has the Zagorka brewery, food processing and engineering firms, and it is the centre of a farming region.

Trakia University, with faculties including medicine, veterinary medicine, agriculture and economics, teaches medicine and veterinary medicine in English, which brings international students to the city. Bulgarian is the language of daily life and of all dealings with the authorities.

Most homes are apartments: older buildings in the grid of the centre, and large panel-block estates such as Zheleznik, Kazanski and Tri Chuchura, built from the 1970s to the early 1990s. Newer apartment buildings and houses are going up on the edges of these estates. Since Bulgaria joined the euro on 1 January 2026, homes are priced in euros.

Population
120,976 (2025)

Source: National Statistical Institute (NSI), Administrative-territorial and territorial division of the Republic of Bulgaria as of 31.12.2025, Table 6 (population of the town of Stara Zagora, current estimate)

Neighbourhoods

Centre
The grid of straight streets laid out after 1879, with the opera house, the remains of the forum of the Roman city of Augusta Traiana and the main shopping streets. Mostly apartments in older and mid-rise buildings.
Tri Chuchura
A district in the west of the city, named after a fountain with three spouts and divided into north, centre and south. The central part is the smallest.
Zheleznik
The largest district in the city by area and by number of residents, mostly panel blocks built between 1985 and 1992, with new houses and apartment buildings on its western edge.
Kazanski
An estate from the 1970s in the south-west of the city, made up of high- and mid-rise panel blocks.
Samara
Samara 1, 2 and 3. In Samara 1, houses dominate north of Tsar Simeon Veliki Boulevard and apartment blocks to the south, with large retail parks on its southern side.

House prices in Stara Zagora

House prices in the six largest cities, second quarter of 2026
Change on the quarter
+2.9%
Change on a year
+15.7%
New homes, change on a year
+22.3%
Existing homes, change on a year
+12.8%

Period: Q2 2026 From the official regional figures for Stara Zagora; the country page has the full table.

Source: National Statistical Institute (NSI), House Price Index for the six largest cities, Q2 2026 (preliminary)

House prices in Bulgaria →

Practical information

  • Stara Zagora's own airport has no scheduled passenger flights. The nearest airports with regular flights are Plovdiv, Burgas and Sofia.
  • The Trakia motorway runs just south of the city, linking it with Sofia, Plovdiv and Burgas, and the railway connects Stara Zagora with the same cities.
  • Local transport is by bus and trolleybus.
  • UMBAL "Prof. Dr. Stoyan Kirkovich", founded in 1883, is the main hospital in the city.
  • Residents who pay health insurance contributions are covered by the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) and register with a GP of their choice.

Frequently asked questions

How many people live in Stara Zagora?

According to Bulgaria's National Statistical Institute, the town of Stara Zagora had 120,976 residents at the end of 2025.

Can foreigners buy property in Stara Zagora?

Citizens of EU and EEA countries can buy homes and land. Citizens of other countries can buy apartments and buildings but in general cannot own land in their own name, which matters for a house with a plot. The sale is completed before a notary, who checks these conditions.

What is Stara Zagora known for?

Its grid of straight streets, laid out when the city was rebuilt after the Russo-Turkish War, its Roman remains from Augusta Traiana, the Neolithic Dwellings Museum and the Ayazmoto park on the hills to the north.

How do I get to Stara Zagora?

By car on the Trakia motorway, or by train from Sofia, Plovdiv or Burgas. The nearest airports with regular flights are Plovdiv, Burgas and Sofia.

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Sources