Print

Croatia removes restrictions for EU buyers

Catherine Deshayes

Come February 1^st next year, buying a home in Croatia will be far more straightforward as the Croatian Government remove purchasing restrictions on European Union citizens. 

The beautiful Balkan country of Croatia lies on the coast opposite Italy on the Adriatic Sea.

One of the most popular holiday destinations in the 1980's, when the island was attracting more than half a million visitors from Britain alone, the civil war of the 1990's had a devastating impact on Croatia, destroying its tourist market.

Now, it is starting to regain its popularity and last year, and, according to figures released by the Croatian National Tourist Board, more than a quarter of a million Britons visited the country's mainland for a holiday, which was an increase of 5.2 per cent compared to 2005 numbers,

Amongst the most popular holiday spots is the attractive capital city of Zagreb, which is home to almost a quarter of Croatia's 4.5 million citizens.

Property prices have been increasing by 15 per cent per annum for the last two years. Croatia's accession to the EU, which is expected to be in 2010 or 2011, looks likely to increase property prices even further, with some anticipating a hike of up to 50 per cent.

Currently, there are restrictions on foreign property purchase in Croatia. Other than paying cash, a foreign buyer can only finance a property purchase either as an individual through a leasing agreement or by setting up a Croatian registered company and borrowing through a mortgage.

From February 1^st next year, EU citizens will have the same rights to purchase property as Croatian nationals, other than certain rural land.

The Croatian Government is also streamlining some of the other processes of buying property in the country to help harmonise domestic legislation with the rest of the EU. 

Whilst there are a number of advantages to the current buying method through a local company, such as the possibility to make a VAT reclaim on the purchase price and the ability to rent the property, these new rules will give people another option, and the international investment market in Croatia looks set to boom.

To browse properties in Croatia for sale, visit croatia.themovechannel.com/

Picture by dizznan