Croatia: Where’s Hot & Where’s Not?
Author: Shane McGinley
June 2008
The Istrian peninsula has slightly lower prices and boasts the best tourist infrastructure. Stretching along the coast, east of Istria is the Kvarner area, whose towns are well known among partygoers. In Dalmatia, Split and Dubrovnik are popular tourist sites, but prices can be higher. The capital, Zagreb, is the best for rental gain, and has a European feel. Central Croatia and Slavonia are more underdeveloped, so more suited to developers or those looking for a gamble.
Case Study 1
Sailing into a dream Croatian home - Tom Duffy
Keen sailor Tom Duffy was thinking on explorer Jacques Cousteau’s wavelength when he decided that Croatia would be where he’d hoist his sail. For it was the clear waters of the Adriatic that persuaded him to buy a holiday home there.
“I initially thought of three countries – Spain, Portugal and Croatia,” says the Irishman. “A friend of mine had been to Croatia the previous year, and said the sailing was spectacular.”
In June 2005, Tom took two weeks off work and flew to Dubrovnik, to begin looking at properties. “I then drove throughout Croatia and found two or three places I was interested in,” he says. “The difference between Istria – where I eventually bought – and the southern area where the cost base is much more advantageous, was that in the north people are friendlier, and have more of an Italian-type attitude. I found them very easy to get on with.”
Tom bought in Novigrad, a small fishing village surrounded on three sides by the clear blue sea of the Adriatic. The area enjoys about 280 days of sunshine a year. Costing approximately €85,000, his 70m2 apartment included two bedrooms, a living room and a kitchen. It was on the ground floor, so he had use of a garden, and he was about 700m from a 350-berth marina. Tom recently sold the property for €140,000, and moved to a slightly bigger place in the same area. He visits Croatia about four times a year, but is considering moving there permanently.
Case Study 2
Luxury Living - Nina Burns & Robert Srzentic
Four years ago, American Nina Burns traded in the fast paced life of California’s Silicon Valley for the Island of Brac, off the coast of Croatia. Nina’s kids had already flown the nest, and her partner Robert Srzentic, a native of Rijeka in Croatia, hadn’t been back to his native land in 40 years. Nina first visited Croatia for a short break in 1980, and fell in love with the place. She returned in 2000, and says she “felt a great affinity with the beauty and nature of the people”.
When the couple decided they would take the leap and start a new life on the other side of the globe, they had three aims: living an improved lifestyle, long-term investment and rental income. They bought land near the coast and built a villa that they could then rent out.
There are presently very few family sized villas in Dalmatia, and although their property wasn’t finished until July last year, they were able to rent it out easily over the summer period. Nina acknowledges that while many holiday homes in Dalmatia are apartments, there is a demand for larger properties – as well as higher-end properties and the growth of higher-end tourism in Croatia.
For Nina, the cultural jump of moving from California to Dalmatia, was literally “shocking”. She says that for the first year in the village, there was a definite sense of both sides getting to know and accept the other. Nina says that she has learnt to appreciate things and people better, and realises the importance of having a sense of humour.
But she explains that life in Croatia is less pressured, their quality of life has improved, and the pace is slower. On the less positive side of things, she misses her children – who are still based in the US – and has had to adapt her love of cookery to incorporate local ingredients and regional styles. Nina now helps manage and market property for other villa owners, in an effort to support higher-end tourism in the area. The couple also hope to develop three large luxury apartments.