ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the introduction and the establishment of gated communities in the context of traditional Bulgarian ways of residing. It focuses on local interpretations and discusses the possible future sustainability of gated communities with regard to the construction of a new residential identity in the country. The developing neo-liberal housing policy and market helped the establishment of gated communities in Bulgaria. The changes in the urban environment took place with the territorial redistribution of social groups and communities shortly after the transition, and with the declining capacity of managing town planning. At the same time, diversity of housing construction in types, quantity and in quality was rising, and gated communities found their place within the diversity. Several sociological studies were conducted, with the aim to clarify housing transformations in the country and motivations of citizens to move into new urban areas and types of residences, among these gated communities.
