Firstly, we would like to thank everyone at Rural Smallholdings Magazine for publishing the original article about our Eco Hamlet project in Croatia, the response has been fantastic!

Within three months of the article being published, we received over a hundred enquiries and they are still coming in each month, it certainly seems as though we have hit on an idea that appeals to many people.

By the end of October we have already welcomed some twenty people to Croatia interested in viewing the Eco Hamlet project and the first three properties have been sold, with one couple having already moved over, and several more planning to do so early in the New Year.

There are three more properties available for sale within the hamlet itself, as well as nine others very close by, so any interested readers are still welcome to get in touch.

At the moment anyone with general building skills would be of great benefit, as would those with marketing and business development experience in the rural tourism sector.

A recent development has been the opening of a small hotel, restaurant, horse riding centre and fishing lake complex, just down the road from the eco hamlet, so people are really getting on board with the Eco tourism aspect of the project.

Thanks to the success of this first project, we have now found another village ideal for creating a similar community, which we hope to get under way by the summer of 2010, just as Croatia is likely to join the EU and a very special party is sure to be had!

Thanks once again to all at Rural Smallholding Magazine, your help is much appreciated.

Keith Pierce

Please click here to visit the Inland Croatia site.

This post was submitted by Keith Pierce.

The current recession and ‘credit crunch’ has led to more and more people seeking smallholdings in order to live a more self sufficient lifestyle and escape the confines of city life.  But with smallholdings and property with land for sale being more popular than ever, how do you get ahead of the game and find one for yourself?

With the number of people looking for smallholdings far outnumbering the number currently available, any advantage you can give yourself in your search will help to ensure you are at the top of the list of potential buyers or tenants.  So what can you do to gain that advantage? 

First, ditch the mainstream property portals as many owners of smallholdings and properties with land are seeking a more direct approach to finding a buyer or tenant for their property.  You could waste hours searching through the property listings on these sites, with only a slim chance of finding the kind of property you are looking for.  Owners of smallholdings and properties with land are far more likely, particularly in the current climate to advertise on specialist smallholding property portals such as www.greenshifters.co.uk.  Websites such as Greenshifters.co.uk specialise only in smallholdings, equestrian properties and property with land and so are far more targeted than mainstream property sites who may only list the occasional property of this type.

On Greenshifters.co.uk owners of smallholdings, farms and properties for sale with land place an ad for their for sale and for rent property and there are also ads  for anyone looking to exchange a property, an alternative to consider if you are having trouble selling your current property.  You can sign up for regular updates by email which will let you know as soon as a new property is listed in any of the smallholdings for rent, smallholdings for sale or for exchange listings.  This will give you an immediate advantage unlike others who are searching for a smallholding who just visit the sites regularly hoping to spot their dream smallholding, because you will be notified instantly when a property is listed.

As well as signing up for updates you can place a ‘Wanted’ ad listing the type of property you are looking for and your requirements and let potential sellers and landlords know a little about yourself and your smallholding experience and plans.  This can be an added advantage because often owners of smallholding properties do not advertise their properties and instead do the research themselves to find a potential buyer or tenant.  Placing a ‘Wanted’ ad on Greenshifters.co.uk means those smallholding owners or owners of  property with land can contact you directly, giving you an even greater chance of securing the smallholding of your dreams and the fact that you have placed a ‘Wanted’ ad shows you are actively looking and are less likely to be a timewaster or ‘daytripper’.

Give yourself the best possible chance of finding your dream smallholding property by placing a ‘Wanted’ ad on Greenshifters.co.uk and/or signing up for regular updates on newly listed properties. 

Please click here to visit the site.

Article by Rural Smallholdings Magazine