Buying
Buying property in Croatia without an agency
Since July 2026 an agent cannot charge a buyer who has not signed a brokerage contract with them, which ends a practice that used to cost buyers thousands.
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Where private sellers actually list in Croatia
Each of these is a separate pool. A saved search on one tells you nothing about the others, so set up alerts on every one you intend to use.
- Anyone.com Listed by the owner
Property listed directly by the people who own it, so there is no agency in the middle and no contract anyone can put in front of you at a viewing. You agree the price with the owner, and the signature certification and land registry entry then happen exactly as they would otherwise.
More than 31 million active listings across 31 markets, agent-represented and owner-listed together. Njuškalo carries mostly agency listings, since private sellers pay per listing.
Search owner-listed homes ↗ - Njuškalo Owners can list, for a fee
Buyer filter Read the advertiser on each listing, since agencies list here in bulk
The largest Croatian classifieds site, where a private seller pays for a listing package by category and duration. Because it is paid, agencies buy listings in volume and the visible mix leans agency, so check who is behind each one rather than assuming.
- bezprovizije.hr Owners can list
Buyer filter Owner listings only, which is the entire point of the site
A dedicated owner-direct portal: every listing comes from the owner or someone they authorised, no duplicates, and no commission for the buyer. Small next to Njuškalo, and the most efficient place to look if dealing directly is what you want.
- Index Oglasi Owners can list
Buyer filter None, and the listings are unstructured
Free to post, so it carries a lot of genuine owner listings alongside a lot of stale ones. Worth checking, worth trusting less, and worth confirming anything you find is still for sale.
- Crozilla Owners can list, for a fee
Buyer filter Check the advertiser
Paid listings with syndication aimed at buyers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and it states plainly that it is not an agency. Relevant mainly on the coast, where a lot of the demand comes from outside Croatia.
How many homes this really covers
No Croatian statistic on the private-sale share exists, so treat any figure you see as invented. What can be said is that a real owner-direct ecosystem exists, and that the state legislated in 2026 specifically to stop agents billing buyers, which tells you the practice was common enough to need a law. Njuškalo's paid model means agency listings dominate the surface, so finding owners takes deliberate looking.
Zakon o posredovanju u prometu nekretnina, Narodne novine 69/2026
The new brokerage act took effect on 7 July 2026 and three parts of it help a buyer directly. An agent cannot charge commission to anyone who has not signed a brokerage contract with them, so the buyer-pays custom is finished unless you opt into it. An agent may not refuse to show you a property merely because you will not become their client, which was the lever used to extract those signatures. And an agent may advertise a property only after signing a contract with the owner, which should reduce the listings that were reposted from someone else. A viewing confirmation is not a brokerage contract and creates no obligation to pay.
In force since 7 July 2026. Read the legislation
Buying one, step by step
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Sign nothing to see a property
Since July 2026 an agent cannot refuse you a viewing for declining to become their client, and cannot charge you without a contract you signed. Read anything handed to you at a viewing, and if it is a brokerage contract rather than a viewing record, you do not have to sign it.
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Search bezprovizije alongside Njuškalo
One is owner-only and small, the other is large and agency-heavy. They do not overlap much, so run both. Add Index Oglasi for the free listings and Crozilla if you are looking on the coast.
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Pull the land registry extract before you pay a deposit
The zemljišne knjige show the registered owner, mortgages and any charges. Confirm the person selling is the person registered, which on inherited coastal property is not always the case.
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Check the property is legally built
Ask for the uporabna dozvola or the equivalent legalisation paperwork. Unlegalised building work is common in Croatia, especially near the sea, and it becomes your problem the moment you buy.
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Get the signature certified
The seller's signature on the contract or the tabularna izjava must be notarised, or you cannot register your ownership. This is the step that actually transfers the property in practice, so do not treat it as a formality.
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Budget the 3 percent transfer tax
It is charged to you as the buyer on the market value, and the tax authority can substitute its own figure for the contract price. It does not apply on a new build bought from a developer, where VAT is in the price instead.
Check before any money moves
- The land registry extract: registered owner, mortgages, charges and any note of a dispute
- Whether the building has a use permit or has been through legalisation, particularly on the coast
- That every co-owner is selling, since inherited property is often held in fractions by several relatives
- The 3 percent transfer tax on market value, and that the tax authority may assess it above the contract price
- For an apartment, the ownership share, the pričuva contributions and any building works already agreed
- Whether the seller is a resident or a company, since that changes whether VAT or transfer tax applies
Selling one instead? See where to list a home yourself in Croatia , or the full guide to selling without an agent in Croatia .
Common questions
Do buyers still pay agency commission in Croatia?
Not unless you agree to. Since 7 July 2026 an agent cannot charge commission to a buyer who has not signed a brokerage contract with them. Before that, paying 2 to 3 percent plus VAT as the buyer was routine, which is roughly €6,250 on a €200,000 apartment.
Can an agent refuse to show me a property if I will not sign?
No. The same law says an interested person cannot be denied a viewing merely because they do not want to become the agent's client. A viewing confirmation is not a brokerage contract and does not oblige you to pay anything.
Where do owners advertise directly?
bezprovizije.hr is owner-only by design. Njuškalo is the biggest site but paid, so agencies list there in bulk and you have to check each advertiser. Index Oglasi is free and unstructured, and Crozilla matters mostly for coastal property aimed at foreign buyers.
Do I need a notary?
Not for a full notarial deed, which Croatia does not require. You do need the seller's signature certified by a notary, without which the land registry will not enter your ownership. A lawyer or notary also has to file the registry application.
What does a buyer pay besides the price?
Transfer tax at 3 percent of market value, unless you are buying a new build from a developer where VAT applies instead. Add notary certification, the land registry filing and your lawyer. The tax is assessed on market value, which the authority can set above what you paid.
Sources
Every legal, tax, and process claim on this page traces to one of these. We re-check them on a schedule and date the page when anything changes.
- Zakon o posredovanju u prometu nekretnina, NN 69/2026Narodne novine · narodne-novine.nn.hr
- Porez na promet nekretninaPorezna uprava · porezna-uprava.gov.hr
- Nekretnine direktno od vlasnikaBezProvizije.hr · bezprovizije.hr
- Kupoprodajni ugovor i tabularna izjavaNest24 · nest24.hr