Exploring Croatia’s Premium Property Scene With Broker Group’s Dino Vulic

Croatia, with its 1,104-mile-long Adriatic coastline dotted with villas, seaside mansions and island hideaways, is well positioned to serve a burgeoning luxury holiday home market.

International buyers are especially enamored with residences along its southernmost Dalmatian Coast and on the islands of Hvar, Korčula and Brač. The Dalmatia region is anchored by the cities of Dubrovnik, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and Split, Croatia’s second largest.

Croatia, known as the “Riviera of Eastern Europe,” regularly tops travel lists. In 2023, Wanderlust Magazine named it the most desirable country in Europe. A $15-billion tourism sector dominates the Croatian economy, delivering 20% of its revenue.

Croatia’s coast and inter-island byways (there are more than 1,200 islands) buzz with mega yachts, including Jeff Bezos’ 417-foot-long sailing yacht—the world’s largest—that cost the Amazon founder half a billion dollars. Croatia’s sun-soaked coast also lures numerous celebrities, including Beyoncé, Jay Z, Michael Jordan and Bernie Ecclestone.

“The country has recorded the highest post-pandemic recovery of all EU [European Union] member states (with the notable exception of Ireland),” reports the World Bank, which ranks Croatia as “high income.”

At the center of Croatia’s premium properties is Broker Group, a Split-based family business founded 30 years ago by Ivica and Meri Vulić. The firm specializes in sales to international buyers seeking second holiday homes and commands the lion’s share of Croatia’s elite real estate market. The firm recently became a member of Forbes Global Properties.

To garner insight into this dynamic region, we spoke with Broker Group managing director and lead agent Dino Vulić, the founders’ son.

You grew up in the real estate industry. Tell us how that’s affected your business style.

The subject of real estate was always in the house. So as a boy I fell in love with real estate, and in a global sense. I would go on tours with my parents and observe. I was motivated to learn fast, to be successful and independent as soon as possible. I entered the business when I graduated from high school at age 19, first helping out in the office. For the past five years, I’ve had the largest number of high value sales in the Dalmatia region of all Croatian agents.

You’ve said that you and your father, Ivica, are quite stubborn. Please explain.

We’re very close. And yes, we are two really stubborn characters. Stubborn yet staying professional and having integrity, not involving emotions. We both learned quickly. We know how to finish sales, which sometimes can seem impossible with complications that can come up. But we always do it.

Let’s talk about international buyers, which constitute more than 90% of your business.

We were the first real estate agency in Croatia to sell property to a foreigner. It was in 1995; we sold a holiday home on the island of Brač to an Austrian. We have buyers from many countries, including Germany, Austria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia and Scandinavia. There are also American and Australian buyers. Austrians, Germans, Polish and Czech people used to come by car to Croatia, but they often fly now. There are many air routes, especially from April to October. (Croatia has direct air connections to 28 countries, with the majority of flights from airports in Zagreb, its capital, Split and Zadar, on the Dalmatian Coast.)

Tell us how real estate has evolved following the Croatian War of Independence (1991-1995).

Croatia is a small country, and after the national war it was difficult for the next 10 years; international buyers never thought of us. People were unsure about traveling to Croatia and buying properties. Some thought it was still a war zone. Since then, it’s been an opportunity for us to present to the world how we’ve grown. For example, Croatia was recently ranked as the safest country in Europe to walk at night [by Numbeo, a database of property, consumer, and quality-of-life metrics].

It also helped that Croatia joined the Schengen Area in 2023, which guarantees free movement [no border checks] to EU citizens, non-EU nationals living in the EU along with tourists, those conducting business and exchange students. In 2023, we also changed our currency from the Croatian kuna to the euro. All this has made buying property here even more attractive to foreigners.

What’s the process for foreigners buying real estate in your country?

In terms of owning property, all members of the European Union are the same as Croatian people. There is no difference. Property can be bought easily. For countries outside of the EU, it’s based on reciprocity between the two countries, and the conditions differ between the various counties. American citizens are able to buy in Croatia without a problem; they just need permission from the [Croatian] Ministry of Justice. Swiss citizens need to spend six months in Croatia before purchasing property.

The properties you represent are stunning and in areas with such natural beauty.

We have the largest offering of properties along the Croatian coastline and on the islands—the most attractive and prestigious homes. This is our specialty, so we are always searching and focused on this.

Please detail a few standout homes you’ve recently sold.

We sold a villa in Rogoznica last year, a 320-square-meter (3,444 square feet), four-bedroom home with a swimming pool, for EUR 2.485 million (US $2.69 million). It’s a new build on a beautiful rocky beach with open sea views. Rogoznica is about 35 km [about 22 miles] from the Split international airport, which is very important. So you can just jump into the taxi and go directly to your villa. It’s a modern design. The rocky beach really sold this home—it’s always the best type on the Croatian coastline, being so natural and rugged. From Rogozinca, it’s the shortest distance across the Adriatic Sea to Italy. The seller was Swiss and the buyer was Irish.

Another was on Solta island near Split, a 370-square-meter (3,983 square feet), four-bedroom stone villa built 10 years ago. It’s first row to the sea and sold for EUR 2.250 million (US $2.44 million). In the summer, you can open the whole house and feel like you are on a boat. You can reach Solta by ferry, but you can actually moor your boat in front of the home. It’s completely protected from wind and storms because the home is in a quiet bay called Uvala Tiha, which means … quiet bay. The seller was Slovenian and the buyer was Polish.

Please name some desirable neighborhoods to live in Split and Dubrovnik.

In Split, definitely around Old Town or in the quarter of Meje, which has sea views and lots of beautiful landscaping. Old Town has ancient Roman architecture and narrow cobblestone streets; it’s a UNESCO World Heritage site where Diocletian’s Palace is located [the massive well-preserved structure dates to the third century AD]. In Dubrovnik, areas around famous Stradun Street are popular, also the areas around Ploče Gate and Pile.

Your website says that you always have an ace up your sleeve. Care to name one?

My aces are properties that are exactly suited to clients. So they are not walking away from me if they intend to buy in Croatia. They will definitely buy. So this is my ace, that I always find exactly the right home for clients.