A small town in Croatia is selling homes for 15 cents — here's who can apply

The homes for sale in Legrad, Croatia have various renovation needs.

Reuters

• Owning a home in Croatia could only cost you pocket change if you're eligible. 
• The available homes are in Legrad — a municipality with about 2,000 residents.
• The policy was introduced in 2018, and the country's government considers it a success.

If the $1 houses for sale in Italy weren't an attractive enough deal for you, consider buying a home in Croatia for pennies.

In Legrad, situated in northern Croatia, there are houses and construction sites on the market for $0.15 — a symbolic price that essentially makes them free. Government officials have come out with a new batch of cheap properties this month.

But not everyone can buy one.

Applicants must be under 45 years old, in a marital or extramarital partnership, have no criminal history, and can't already own property in the country. Business Insider has reached out to the Croatian government and local Legrad officials for further information on the stipulations, and if the program has changed since its introduction.

The practically free homes are part of the small town's effort to increase its population of 2,000. The initiative first came over five years ago, and it's known as the "houses for a penny" policy, local Croatian publication HRT reported.

There are more children in Legrad since the policy went into effect years ago, and the municipality is building its first kindergarten as a result.

"A total of five houses ready for occupancy have been sold. Three families have already moved in, and what delights us is that all three families welcomed a new member during their move-in. This has increased the number of children in the daycare center," Ivan Sabolić, the mayor of Legrad, told HRT.

The available homes have varying levels of repair needs. When 19 houses were put up for sale in 2021 for about $0.14, Legrad offered to pay $3,558 for necessary renovations, Reuters reported. Inhabitants had to agree to stay for at least 15 years at the time, but it's unclear if these terms are a part of the deal for this round of available homes.

Regardless of whether any needed repairs are covered, those prices are still unheard of in the US. The median price of the average starter home in the US reached a record high of $243,000 in June amid soaring mortgage rates throughout the year.

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