Montenegro

Montenegro is the softest entry on this page in terms of formalities and the most ambiguous in terms of market depth. A foreign individual buys an apartment or a house much as a local does: the deal is done before a notary, the title is registered in the cadastre, and there is no nationality restriction on housing.

Land works differently. Agricultural land, forest and plots above a certain size are not sold to a foreign individual — a Montenegrin company is formed and becomes the owner. The structure is legal and routine, but it adds a legal entity with its own reporting, and it has to be maintained for the whole period of ownership.

On citizenship, plainly, because the offers still circulate: the citizenship-by-investment programme closed at the end of 2022 and was not extended. Anything marketed today as "a Montenegrin passport for an apartment" refers either to another country or to ordinary naturalisation measured in years.

The country uses the euro without being in the eurozone and is negotiating EU accession. For a buyer that means two things: there is no currency risk between the euro and a local currency, and the "they will join and prices will rise" scenario remains a scenario rather than a calculation. It does not belong in a model.

The defining feature of the market is seasonality and thinness. The coast lives in summer, liquidity falls out of season, and time-to-exit here is not measured in weeks. That is normal for a market this size — and worth knowing before, not after.

The caveat: The citizenship-by-investment programme closed at the end of 2022; anything sold under that name today concerns other countries.