Up till now, real estate investment in the Czech Republic has been almost entirely one-sided. Foreigners, attracted by relatively cheap prices and steady value appreciation, have been buying as much property as they're legally allowed. But the investment tide is starting to turn — almost imperceptibly, but enough that a few agencies are now offering Czechs the opportunity to invest elsewhere.

"There is big potential in this area," says Dita Korčiánová, a senior estate manager with Labartt Properties of Prague. "We believe that people in the Czech Republic will soon discover the advantage of using part of their income or savings to acquire [foreign] property."

Czech managers with plenty of disposable income are the main target group of this pitch. But investment is not always the primary motivation in buying property abroad, according to Lucie Pilipová, a partner with Mediterránea Real Estate Investments.

"There are basically two types of clients," she says. "The first ones are entrepreneurs and managers who want their second home by the sea. But ever since last year, we have been contacted by another kind, the pure investor."

Real estate firms are trying to get the word out that it doesn't take much cash to land a coveted property abroad.

"Austria is one of the most popular countries where our clients buy properties, and the prices of studios in a good ski center in Kaprun start at around 35,000 euros [990,000 Kč/$44,800]," says Jan Rejcha, managing director of the real estate and relocation firm Rellox. "So if you can afford to buy an apartment in a Czech ski region, you can buy one in Austria as well."

For Mediterránea clients, buying a foreign property may mean coming up with only 10–20 percent of the purchase price, then working with a bank to secure up to 80 percent of the total mortgage. Labartt offers similar proposals.

"Today, banks are willing to assist with 70 to 80 percent of the property price," says Labartt's Korčiánová. "So for 35,000 euros, one can climb onto the [investment] ladder."

While some clients take up to a year to find the perfect getaway, some often take far less time to choose. According to Pilipová, several recent Mediterránea clients took only a day to decide what to buy. That reflects a steady increase in the number of buyers.

"During our first year in 2003, we had less than 10 clients for [foreign] property purchases or long-term rents," says Pilipová. "In 2004 our number of clients doubled. Last year, we finished sales and purchases in the value of several million euros. This year, during the first four months, we have already signed the same number of contracts as we did for all of last year."

If you have the money, there's no arguing with the selection of available properties or the financial returns, according to Rejcha.