Let’s face it, adulting is hard. Paying bills, working long hours, pay is not always great, and still trying to have some fun along the way. It’s a delicate balance. Most of us want to be homeowners one day but housing prices are soaring. Sometimes that dream seems impossible because of that fact. But one small town in Croatia is trying to help young people make that dream a reality.
Legrad, a small town in Croatia near the border of Hungary, is selling 17 abandoned houses to young people in the hopes that they can help them with their dream and help the small town become more populous again. Many small rural towns have seen people leave for big cities, having the rural towns become run-down, the houses abandoned, and towns struggling to get people to stay. In order to reverse this, the town is selling these empty houses for a Croatian Kuna-which is the equivalent of 16 cents-and is also going to help the buyers by giving them money for renovations.
Look Inside One Of The Houses
For being old, abandoned houses this one at least is in pretty good shape. Needs some updates but nothing too bad and the house looks structurally sound. This opportunity is only open to Croatian residents though and to people who are under 40 years old. Mayor Ivan Sabolic had this to say about the opportunity:
“After some media reports about our action we got inquiries about houses from very distant places like Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, Argentina or Colombia.”
Ivan Sabolic
Whoever buys one of these houses gets $4,000 for renovations and maybe even 20% subsidies for the homes that are sold privately. Other countries have done this as well, Italy and Japan. Trying to stop rural depopulation and keep people living in these rural areas. With these incentives, it’s hard to turn this down if you fit the profile!
Click here to read about a hangover museum that has opened in Croatia.