“When You Meet, You’re Family”

Marek Vašíček first came to Albania on a motorbike, bringing his preconceptions with him. Today, he helps Czech clients select and verify properties there. In the Bod Obratu podcast with Jakub Lukšík, he spoke about why people do not haggle over property prices in Albania, how long it takes to register a property with the Land Registry, and why the first meetings with a client are more important than the property itself.

Your first encounter with Albania wasn’t businessrelated. What was it like?

I was travelling with my wife by motorbike through Montenegro. Around midday, just before we reached our destination, my satnav stopped working because it had overheated, and the motorbike was showing a road temperature of 47 degrees. An older Albanian man was sitting by the roadside. He spoke Albanian and Italian, while I spoke English. He stood there with me in the midday sun for 20 minutes, explaining the way until I finally understood that I needed to go back to the roundabout and take the third exit on the left. Afterwards, I wondered why he had gone to all that trouble. And that, to me, is Albania. Someone there will want to help you even if you don’t understand each other.

There are still a lot of preconceptions about Albania here. Which ones do you hear most often from clients?

Safety. In my view, Albania is safer than quite a few European cities. You can go shopping there in the evening without having to worry about anything. Of course, you need to use common sense, but that applies everywhere. There is one thing I’ve noticed, though. Those preconceptions almost always come from people who have never been there. Once they have, they no longer have them.

What does Albia do?

We sell properties in Albania and provide all the services that go with them. Buying a property isn’t the end of the process – that’s where it really begins. We work with clients from the initial meetings through choosing a location and carrying out legal checks to managing the property. We also have our own service team in Albania, which can renovate and furnish properties to European standards.

What attracts Czechs to Albania?

The sea, which we don’t have here. And the weather. Albania enjoys good weather for almost 300 days a year, so you can use an apartment outside the main season as well. I have no problem going there in November or February. I have one client whose wife wants the sea while he prefers the mountains. In Albania, you can have both – the mountains are just a short distance from the coast. The value for money is also attractive, and that applies not only to property but to services as well.

What determines the choice of apartment?

It depends on what the client wants to use it for. Someone looking for their own holiday home by the sea will want a quieter location and a playground for the children. An investor will be looking for something completely different: a location that is popular with tourists, rental yield and return on investment. Many clients combine the two. Those initial meetings are the most important part of the entire process. Once we know the location, budget and expectations, choosing the apartment itself is quick. Without that information, it’s a risk.

Property ownership in Albania has a reputation for being complicated, and many ownership claims also stem from restitution following the fall of the regime. What should buyers watch out for?

Above all, the ownership certificate. The Land Registry in Albania works well and records can be checked, so there is no reason to buy a property with a skeleton in the closet. Over the years, we have built relationships with trusted developers who we know deliver their work to a high standard. The second category is apartments sold by Albanian owners themselves, where we always verify the legal status of the property.

How much time should someone allow for the purchase?

It’s not a case of a client turning up with the money and having the keys the next day. We follow both Albanian and Czech law, and notaries from both countries work on the documentation. Allow three weeks to a month. I had a client who bought a property in May and thought he would be living there in June. It doesn’t work like that even in the Czech Republic.

Do people haggle over prices in Albania?

No. People don’t haggle even at the market, let alone over an apartment. Prices are set according to the market and are still affordable for those of us from Central Europe, so clients generally don’t even question them.

And as an investment?

An apartment rests on three pillars. I can use it myself, I can rent it out, and its value increases over timein my experience, by roughly 15 per cent a year. So yes, there is scope for speculation. But that’s not how my clients think. They buy properties for themselves and their children, not to flip them.

We’re on the Bod Obratu podcast. Has the ‘turning point’ for Albanian property already arrived?

I don’t think so. I believe the best is still ahead for the country. Prices are still favourable, and the infrastructure has changed beyond recognition over the past five years – the roads to the south are excellent now. The new airport in Vlorë is still waiting to open as the final paperwork is being sorted out. Once it becomes operational, it will attract more investors. And if Albania succeeds in joining the European Union, that will provide another boost.

What would you say to someone who is tempted but still hesitant?

Approach Albania with respect and humility, and it will give the same back to you. There’s also a saying I like. It isn’t Albanian – I think it’s Japanese – but it captures the country perfectly: when you meet, you’re family. That’s exactly what you experience there. Sit down and talk to the taxi driver or the waiter. Albanians themselves say that a successful day isn’t measured by how much money you’ve made, but by how many times you’ve sat down for a coffee with someone.