Dubrovnik Still Leads Croatian Property Market

The city of Dubrovnik still leads the Croatian property market in terms of price, although the cost of living in the city situated at the southern tip of Croatia can be less than other Croatian cities.

The Istrian city of Pula on the Croatian north-west coast recorded the largest average property price rise over the last two years, up 11 per cent to reach an average price per square metre of 1,485 euros for apartments.

Croatian apartments tend to show a faster annual price growth than houses, with Pula apartments up 4.83 per cent over the last 12 months, compared to a rise of 2.5 per cent for houses.

There is a similar story in the Croatian capital of Zagreb, where the average price per square metre of an apartment is 1,777 euros, whilst a house with yard comes in at just 1,265 euros per square metre.

Apartment prices in Zagreb rose strongly by 8.3 per cent last year, whilst houses only crept up by a tiny 0.3 per cent.

As in most regions, there was a great disparity from area to area in the city of Zagreb. The areas of Kruge and Zapruđe surged ahead with rises of 24 and 23 per cent respectively. Trešnjevka-South also exhibited strong capital growth, up 16 per cent from a year ago.

From county to county, the largest disparity in Croatian property prices can be seen between the south and the east. Mainly due to the fact that the southern county of Dubrovnik-Neretva is home to the city of Dubrovnik, it continues to take first place in the Croatian county league with an average price per square metre of 2,494 euros for apartments and 2,100 euros for houses.

Eastern Croatia offers the lowest price properties available, with average apartment prices below 800 euros per square metre and houses rarely exceeding 500 euros per square metre.

Prices in Zagreb county, outside of the city, are also much more affordable. Average apartment prices are 36 per cent lower than their city counterparts, and houses show an even higher saving of 43 per cent.

The Croatian property market continues to recover, with the popular west coast cities leading the way for most overseas property investors.