EU membership has meant that Poland has opened up far more for foreign buyers, and any EU citizens are free to purchase land and property most places in the country, so long as it isn’t farmland or forest land. The amount of land that can be purchased in urban areas is limited to around one acre – it is also acceptable for foreigners to inherit property in Poland. Though the country is a former Soviet-ruled one, it is not prone to the same confusion that a lot of the other Eastern Bloc countries are, and disputes of ownership are far rarer than they are in the countries that were under more ‘traditional’ Communist rule. The process isn’t always plain sailing however, and the off plan investor should be prepared to deal with bureaucracy and legal pitfalls should they rear their ugly heads.

The process of reclamation of properties from pre-war times is still underway in a number of districts, and legal advice should definitely be sought if attempting to purchase a property in these regions – some of the areas with widely unclaimed land carry with them the tragic legacy of being former Jewish communities which were devastated by the Second World War.