The company also offers advice on the buying process itself and point out that there are two options for private investors

The company also offers advice on the buying process itself and point out that there are two options for private investors. One is to buy as a foreign national, which they say can take up to six months; second, buyers may form a Croatian company, which then buys the property on their behalf. This second method is faster and allows the option of a mortgage, currently not available for foreign buyers, but all buyers must seek independent legal advice beforehand.Keppler believes that the country offers excellent investment opportunities: “Prices in the last six months have gone up by about 30 to 40 per cent but, speaking to other agents, I think we could see them rise by around 250 per cent in the next three years. Situated just 70m from Dubrovnik with sea views, it has a guide price of €600,000. A 17th-century castle that once belonged to Prince Getaldic and lies in Zupa Dubrovacka, just 8km from Dubrovnik and a 10-minute drive from its International Airport, is for sale at €550,000.Croatian Sun will arrange personalised inspection visits for potential buyers – their offices are based in Dubrovnik but they cover the entire country – and offer a full service including design and build. “Like me, they often tend to have an outdated idea of the country but within 24 hours of visiting they change their minds.”Croatian Sun are currently marketing properties that would persuade any hesitant buyer. A 500-year-old renovated tower is for sale along with an old olive mill that needs full renovation – internally, the mill is exactly the same as it was 400 years ago.

But the beauty of the scenery and particularly the islands of Hvar and Brac have stayed with him. He hopes to spend between £50,000 and £100,000 on a property needing renovation: “I want an old property which I can restore myself. I think that it’s relatively cheap at the moment but it will be a good investment, particularly as they are set to join the EU.”Croatia has only recently restablished its tourism industry after the conflicts of the Nineties, but, historically, the country has been a favourite with British holidaymakers – particularly sailing enthusiasts. Paul Keppler, the founder of Croatian Sun, finds that many clients have visited Croatia in the past but are uncertain as to what they will find there today. I’m not interested in typical investment properties in Spain or Portugal but this is one of the best parts of the world and I think there are potential bargains there.”Like Badham Thornhill, James has visited Croatia just once, when he sailed around the Dalmatian coastline before the outbreak of war in the early Nineties.

It launched just last month, yet at the Homes Overseas exhibition a couple of weeks ago its stand was mobbed by potential buyers keen to register their interest A large percentage of those were investors. Paul James of West Sussex owns a UK property portfolio currently worth more than £1 million, yet says his next addition will be a Croatian property “I want to broaden my horizons. “I think it will be a good investment but that’s coincidental really, and I’m not planning to sell in five years’ time.”Croatian Sun is a relatively new company marketing homes in the country. They are laidback, as it’s a hot country, and generally it’s a very attractive psyche.”Badham Thornhill had only visited the country once before buying there but he plans to use the house as a holiday home, and ultimately intends to spend six months of the year there. You get the keys and the house is yours.”Croatian paperwork can take time and although Badham Thornhill’s house was in his possession relatively quickly, the former vendors requested one last favour: “They did ask, all of them, to stay one extra night and of course I agreed.” Badham Thornhill certainly fits the typical Avatar buyer’s profile as he has an enormous liking for the Croatian people and a strong interest in the country’s traditions and history: “Unlike many of their neighbours they are very westward-looking and yet have a clear identity. He bought through Avatar International and describes feeling very confident throughout the buying process, although he did find it to be “rather antiquated …

you all troop to the local notary’s office and then back across the road to the bank where you hand over the money. It is for sale at US$115,000.David Badham Thornhill has just paid £115,000 for a four-bedroom, two-bathroom Seventies house directly overlooking the sea in Perna, one mile west of Orebic overlooking Korcula island. This beautifully restored, three-storey property lies snuggled within a lane of similar houses and has open sea views of the harbour and outlying bush-clad islands. In nearby Porec – which features a magnificient Unesco World Heritage-approved basilica – a reconstructed Istrian stone house on the edge of the village and just five kilometres from the sea has a layout of two studio rooms on the ground floor and a three-bedroom apartment on the first and second floors.