Albania

Not so long ago, this was a country renowned for nothing but grimness and the oppressive rule of Communist dictator Enver Hoxha. But even the Party couldn’t blot out the sunshine, and despite its infrastructure, Albania has a climate that’s every bit equal to its neighbour Greece. What’s more, you can pick up a basic Albanian seaside flat for the price of a family cruise (well, an expensive one, anyway). The website www.property-abroad.com has apartments in the resorts of Vlora and Saranda for just £25,000 (views across to Corfu), and for £29,000, you can buy an apartment at Lalzit Bay, a huge, new (i.e. still being built) beachfront development, 20 miles from the capital Tirana.


Pattaya Thailand
Not exactly a romantic hideaway, but cheap. For £26,300, you can buy a studio flat in The Vision, a 23-storey apartment block due to be completed in 2014. Or, push the boat out with a one-bedroom flat that’s twice the size, for £46,000.
Viewed from the outside, a glass-and-aluminium block on a hillside is not going to be the most beautiful building in the world, but it has great views across the sea and over the twinkling lights of Pattaya’s nightclubs. The place attracts six million visitors per year, some of whom might like to rent your place when you’re not there. There’s a swimming pool on the 20th floor, too.


Puglia Italy
A trullo is a sort of stone-built, pointy-roofed, Italian hobbit home, and there’s one for sale for just under £80,000 at Ceglie Messapica, 25 miles northwest of Brindisi, on the southern heel of Italy. It has everything a compactly sized human needs: one bedroom, one bathroom, two acres and lots of shady fruit trees. Prices in Puglia are generally a lot lower than in Tuscany and Umbria. You can buy a distinctive white masseria (a traditional farmhouse, usually with olive groves and outbuildings), for around £310,000 (unconverted) and £440,000-plus (converted).

St Petersburg Russia

An awful lot lovelier than Moscow, though just as cold in winter. The cheapest way to own an apartment here is to buy out the tenants of an old-fashioned communal flat, in which families occupy their own living rooms, but share, say, a bathroom and kitchen. However, this is a long process (four to eight months), and can take longer if, as estate agents City Realty Russia put it, the tenants “start to play games”. It is essential, then, to make sure your agents can help you cut through the red tape and low-level obstructiveness that you may encounter. As a rough rule of thumb, flats start at £1,250 per sq m for communally owned, £1,600 for privately owned and £3,000 for somewhere with a good view and windows facing the street, rather than a courtyard. Size-wise, apartments range from 25 sq m (small) to 70 sq m (medium) and 120 sq m (oligarch proportions).


Kraków Poland

If the idea of living in a converted Polish brewery appeals, there are 30 one-bedroom apartments on sale at the former Central Kraków brewery for £64,000 to £73,800.

The good news about Poland is that house prices have been rising (by 8 per cent in 2010), and the country is hosting the European Football Championships next year. When buying a new home, though, you need to find out if the price is for a “black finish” or a “white finish” (i.e. with the kitchen and bathroom fitted). “Black finish” will add up to £15,000 to the price.

Turkey
The Turkish Property, life-style offering 300 days of sunshine in a year is as well in parallel with sophisticated cultural and sporting activities. Alanya truly has something for everyone. More than ever before more and more Europeans are choosing the regions relaxed pace, its way of life. Alanya’s sophisticated nature, excellent infrastructure & weather makes your property semi-permanent or permanent home base. A beach side apartment from £80,000