According to data released by the National Statistics Institute, some 2 697 residential buildings (18 864 homes) were built in Bulgaria last year. This is an annual hike of 42% in the constructed new homes. The total built-up area last year stood at 938k sq.m. Burgas had the most newly built homes (5 158), followed by Varna (3 471). The capital city Sofia ranks third with 3 431 new homes, which is 115% up YoY.