Lyulin was VIG's first land entitlement play. In late 2021, VIG acquired five parcels totaling 3,462 m² on Pancho Vladigerov Boulevard in Lyulin 2 — one of Sofia's largest residential districts — for €680,000. The plots had no building rights. Just land and potential.
Over the next three years, VIG ran the full entitlement cycle. Compensation agreements with existing stakeholders. Administrative processing. PUP submission and approval. Architectural design by 5R Studio producing a full concept — a mixed-use building with 90 apartments, 135 underground parking spots, and 1,100 m² of commercial space across 16,650 m² GBA. The design visa confirmed development potential of 12,100 m² aboveground across a 16-floor tower, a 14-floor section, a 9-floor wing, and a 5-floor podium.
With the visa in hand, VIG exited. On 10 August 2025, the company sold VBI LR's shares — the SPV holding the entitled land — for €2,100,000. No construction. No bank financing. No sales risk.
The result: approximately €1.35M in net profit on a ~€745K all-in investment over 45 months. Roughly 31% annualized return.
Deal Overview
Purchase: €680,000 (€196/m²) · Sale: €2,100,000 (€607/m²) · Net Profit: ~€1.35M · Annual ROI: ~31% · Hold: 45 months · Exit: Share sale of VBI LR EOOD
Value Creation Timeline
Q4 2021 — Negotiations, due diligence, purchase at €680K.
2022–23 — Compensation agreements, notary deed.
2024 — Administrative processing, PUP approval, design visa confirmed.
Q1 2025 — PoA for sale, sale negotiations initiated.
August 2025 — Share sale closed at €2.1M.
Key Decisions
01 — Acquired off-market from Top Real at €196/m², well below the €300–400/m² range for entitled plots in Lyulin. The discount reflected absent building rights and the complexity of consolidating five separate parcels.
02 — Ran the full entitlement cycle in-house. Compensation agreements, PUP approval, 5R Studio architectural concept — all managed by VIG's F2 team. No external development partners, no equity dilution during the hold.
03 — Exited at design visa, not building permit. The strategic choice was to sell before committing to construction financing, contractor risk, and a 30-month build cycle. The visa stage captures 60–70% of the land value uplift with zero construction risk.
04 — Structured the exit as a share sale (VBI LR EOOD), not a direct property transfer. This preserved the entitled PUP inside the SPV, avoided double stamp duty for the buyer, and simplified the transaction to a single share transfer agreement.
Lesson Applied
Lyulin validated VIG's opportunity development model: invest at €200/m² RZP or below, create building rights through entitlement work, exit at visa stage with 100%+ return. The 45-month cycle was longer than the 12–18 month target due to administrative delays — but the return more than compensated. VIG has since applied stricter timeline discipline on entitlement projects and replicated this model on Odrin 88 and VIGARDEN.