Bulgaria 39th in Knight Frank Global House Price Index

House prices in Bulgaria fell by 2.6% on an annual basis in the second quarter of 2012, according to a report of the Knight Frank consultancy.

The latest edition of the Knight Frank Global House Price Index, which compares the performance of mainstream residential markets across the world on a quarterly basis, includes 54 countries, with Bulgaria ranking 39th.

Bulgaria is one of the 23 countries to register decreases in house prices in the period Q2, 2011 - Q2, 2012.

The decrease in house prices in Bulgaria decelerates in 2012.

The first six months of 2012 bring a decrease of only 0.3%, while house prices increase by 0.2% on quarterly basis in Q2, 2012.

According to data of the National Statistical Institute (NSI), the increase registered in Q2, 2012 is the first quarterly growth since end 2008, when Q4, 2008 started a spate of 14 successive drops in house prices.

The latest edition of the Knight Frank Global House Price Index shows that Ireland registered the largest decrease, with house prices falling by 14.4% on an annual basis in the period April-June 2012.

Ireland is preceded by Hungary (11.2% decrease) and Greece (11.3% decrease).

The Global House Price Index rose 1.1% in the second quarter of 2012, the index's strongest quarterly performance since 2009.