Owners of property in Bulgaria could be set to benefit from a high rate of capital appreciation.

According to the National Statistical Institute, the price of residential property went up by three per cent during the third quarter of 2008, the Sofia Echo reports.

This trend was found to be particularly apparent in Bulgarian cities, with Plovdiv for example seeing values rise by 11 per cent.

Dobrich also saw a high rate of growth, as prices were nine per cent up on those recorded during the previous quarter.

This means that investors who have entered the market ahead of this period of house price inflation could find their property is now worth more than at the time it was first purchased.

As a result, property owners who opt to sell up at some point in the future could stand to make a considerable profit from the capital gains.

The release of the figures comes shortly after Bulgaria was highlighted by Knight Frank as one of Europe's fastest growing property markets.