Here’s Where You Can Buy A House For 16 Cents

With house prices in big cities like London and New York at an all time high, getting on the property ladder is an increasingly tough task for millennials these days.

The good news is, if you’re willing to move a bit further afield there are still some places where you can buy a house for an absolute steal. Now, one town has taken things to extremes, by giving young people the chance to snap up houses for less than the price of a Freddo.

Legrad, a northern town which sits on Croatia’s border with Hungary, recently sold 17 abandoned houses for one Croatian Kuna – around 16 cents – and even gave the new buyers money to help with renovations.

The town reportedly offered up the virtually free homes to people under the age of 40 who were looking to get into the housing market, and while the programme was aimed at convincing young Croatians to relocate to Legrad, the town’s mayor says the bargain prices caught attention from residents in far flung countries.

The cut price houses were advertised as a way to try and reverse the depopulation that has hit the town hard over recent decades. Legrad used to be the second largest city in Croatia, but has since shrunk to a population of just 2,250.

To help change the town’s fortunes, Legrad has offered some serious incentives for prospective residents, promising anyone who buys a home in the town up to $4,000 (25,000 Kuna) towards renovations, and also offering 20% subsidies for privately sold homes.

But as with any offer this good, there are a few catches. Buyers must be financially solvent, and must also commit to staying in Legrad for at least 15 years. Additionally, due to immigration laws, the houses are realistically only open to Croatian residents.

The town’s generous offer follows similar moves by remote villages in Japan and Italy, where houses are being given away for free to try and counter rural depopulation.