Hi to you all in the Cluj club! I just got back from my latest Romania trip where I decided to revisit Cluj after a 2 year absence, having spent most of my recent time in Bucharest and Brasov. I can see why you are a fan of Cluj, it is a beautiful sprawling city even in the fog last week. There are a lot of new builds popping up and the whole city seems alive with development projects. I toured around with a local agent who was recommended to me and she was really thorough and honest, if anything a bit too dilligent if thats possible.I was surprised at the prices though and especially the price growth in the last 12 months. I couldn't help feeling that I should have been there investing 2-3 years ago. I have to say though that the market in Cluj is slightly more mature than Brasov and I definitaly do not agree that Brasov has had its day. If anything there is more scope for future growth in Brasov...maybe not so fast an expansion in the population but a new airport and the massive expansion planed for tourism will stimulate spectacular growth. There are nowhere near as many new builds in Brasov and prices are lower than cluj. It is still possible to buy land within a reasonable distance of the center of Brasov and at sensible prices as well. As for no commercial center..er it exists and is thriving and actually huge!! In short, difficult to make comparisons between these two cities as they are quite different, both have positive qualities which far outweigh the negatives, and both are more appealing than Bucharest. Cluj as the center of the Universe? No give me Brasov any day for only one reason, better deals are available.

Thanks for that honest informative report Alan, can't wait to visit now, although best wait for the summer eh!!!

Hi Good to have you in the Club. Brasovs future airport is surounded by mountains and will probably have worse weather conditions than Turgu Mures from which Wizz got out of in favour of Cluj. My bet is that there will be daily flights to Cluj early in the New Year. Wizz chose TM cos it had a long runway but Cluj has plans to extend. For a while Wizz, I think, will be flying in 38 less passengers than they could to TM cos of this problem. Once the runway is extended 7 days a week for sure! What Brasov has for tourism is limited to Poiana Brasov and a few other local places ...snow. Rich Bucharest Romanians already make this a lucrative business. Skiing might be cheap but hotels and extras are not. Keep to the PS principle of avoiding HOTSPOTS cos that also applies to SNOWSPOTS. To be realistic the potential for tourism here is great but there is so much choice in the world today that it is a limited factor to take into account. Going back to the start of this forum I took exception to the suggestion that Cluj was not pretty. I support 100% the structure of PS analysis but what they dont include is some information about quality of life which I guess is a 'prettyness' factor. In November the Opera season begins with the very best (there are two operas - Hungarian and Romanian), there are two theatres (Romanian and Hungarian) and we have the Milan Scala Orchestra playing here in 2 weeks time. Russian Cossacks appear in the first week of next month and also IRIS ( No. 1 Ro. band re-appear in November) and there's much more. so I have a social life...that's important. Charles

Hi Pauline and others, I promised you some Jucu pics so here they come. Jucu is well ouside of Cluj and is not as 'pretty' as other parts of Cluj such as those I previously posted. However these pics will give you a view (not a pretty one) of what you are being asked to invest in. Charles

When building in Romania the winter is the enemy. Radu knows how to build and build fast. Blocks 2 and 3 will soon be 'in the red' so he can work inside if sub zero temperatures attack.

I'm now going to take you up the road to the Industrial Park. It's difficult to visualise how enormous it is without going there yourself but I hope these and subsequent pics help.

These pics will show you the enormity of the whole project. Jucu is going to be state of the art in terms of industrial development and infrastructure. It might not be pretty but it's not intended to be. If you want pretty then Cluj has it for sure. Cluj has history, culture and architecture. It is being renovated slowly but if only 1% of what is being spent on Jucu was set aside to give the city a fresh coat of paint many would agree that Cluj would rival Prague for history and beauty.

Hi Liam, Just wondered whether you'd given Albania any consideration, it seems one of the few 'bargain basement' level investment opportunities remaining in that part of the world and seems to be 'blipping' more frequently on the property radar of late, with figures of 35K Sterling for a 2-bed apt in or around Vlore being quoted..... It may not have the culture of Cluj but given it's geographical location re. Corfu/Italy it has to have some scenic appeal at the very least!!! Given the speed at which all the CEE countries have progressed I'm sure Albania won't be long in following the trend including increasing price levels.... (only my opinion no stats to support). Tirana may be an even more interesting proposition but prices seem to already be higher than on the coast. I believe infrastructure is still very poor and I'd be doubly checking on who I'd be handing my hard-earned cash over to. Possible entry to EU targetted for 2014 does make it worth more than a thought in my book.

HI Pauline I know Albania has potential for sure but you have to be EXTREMELY careful For the last eight years I recruited social workers from various countries (mainly Romania) to take up employment in the UK. I changed their lives for the better so I have some very good reliable friends amongst whom I can include two Albanians. They are aware of my activities in Roman9ia and when discussing the potential for property investment in Albania they issue a very strong health warning. About a year ago the government started an initiative to attract foreign investors. Go to http: / /www .eubusiness .com /Finance /060816155714 .ph62rhd9 for details. Perhaps PS can investigate further? Kind regards Charles

After my last comment made last night today I found out that a scheme exists wherby the City Council is making loans to private owners in the old town area of Cluj to renovate their buildings. Many public owned buildings have already been done I'll find out more about this. I've been told that the Mayor may at some point make renovation compulsory! Cluj will rival Prague for sure. Charles My additional comment to the last pic would be that Cluj's skyline is blighted by cables...electricity, tram lines etc. At some point these will have to be rationalised and modernised. But Rome wasnt built in a day but Cluj is now moving very quickly to restore it's architectural heritage.