Throughout the past decade, Central Europe's real estate market was one of its fastest growing and most lucrative investment sectors. Investors and speculators across Europe as well as Central European diasporas took part in the buying frenzy.

By early 2009 Central Europe's capitals had some of the most expensive housing prices within the EU. Seven Central European cities ranked in the top 50 most expensive real-estate markets in the world including Bucharest, Kraków, Prague, Riga and Warsaw.

The global financial crisis and subsequent credit crunch burst the region's property bubble. Central Europe's banks tightened lending requirements while buyers were worried that their euro- and Swiss franc-denominated mortgages would raise debt obligations as regional currencies plummeted. This was especially problematic throughout the Baltic capitals and Bulgaria's resurging Black Sea tourist outposts (whose local currencies were all pegged to the euro).

Now that the eurozone is experiencing its own market turbulence, perhaps it's time to reassess Central Europe as a high-risk real-estate investment. Unlike southern tier hot spots Greece and Spain, markets in Poland and the Czech Republic did not experience a total property bust.

In addition to attracting urban buyers (due to growing local middle class ambitions) both countries were able to take advantage of their non-euro status, via independent currency flexibility, and adjust prices.

Moreover, since local economic health drives housing prices, Poland's property market is in a much stronger position than say Bulgaria or Hungary. While all out investment pessimism towards Central Europe's property markets has abated, investors still need to be discerning when buying in the region. Like countries within the eurozone, it is important to distinguish that one size does not fit all.

Re: Redrawing the European property map

Respectable analysis that distinquishes between the countries of Central Europe which had mostly stable property markets as opposed to those that didn't during the world financial crisis. One item which must be further analyzed are the particular segments of the property market. Too often, 'property' is often associated with 'flats' located in large cities, and nothing more. Other parts which make up the property puzzle are: private homes, land, farms, commerical property, and industrial property. Prices of flats have taken the steepest hit of all property segments, including in Poland and the Czech Republic. Land and farm prices in Central Europe, although gradually increasing, still remain underpriced compared to that of Western Europe.