Picture an early walk past the carved wooden doors of Stone Town before the ferries start running. Or an evening on the terrace of a restored trullo in Puglia, with olive groves running toward the Adriatic. Or a rainforest trail in Dominica that ends at a hot spring with nobody else in it.
Places like these feel different before most people know how to get there. “Some of the best years of ownership come early, when the airport is still quiet,” writes Stephanie Gilezan, co-founder and CEO of Airdomo, in the foreword to the company’s 2027 Destination Homes Report. It is the stage, she writes, when the coastline is still unbuilt and dinner conversation still turns to the question, “Where exactly is that?”
Gilezan, who has spent 28 years in real estate, put it more bluntly in an interview: “The smartest buyers move before the trade is obvious.” Three of the eleven markets in the report show what that early stage looks like, each in a different way.
“When I can get away from all of this, I want to put my feet in the sand. I want to see the water,” Gilezan said. “And that’s Zanzibar.”
The spice island off Tanzania has drawn European sun-seekers and safari-goers for decades, with Stone Town at one end and the kite lagoons of Paje at the other. What’s new for buyers is the path to staying longer. A qualifying property investment of at least $100,000 may support a residence-permit application for the buyer and eligible family members, subject to approval.
For remote workers and families, that turns a beach vacation into something closer to a second life. “Why not have a place to work where we can also stroll along the beach and have real family time together?” Gilezan said. International hotel brands are starting to arrive: Iberostar is marketing stays at its Zanzibar hotel from November 2026, and a Le Meridien has been announced. At the end of October, a three-bedroom off-plan pool villa in Fumba was advertised from $350,000, with a 5% facilitation fee on top.
The heel of Italy is whitewashed towns, olive groves and stone farmhouses running down to the sea. British and northern European buyers have been restoring its trulli and masserie for twenty years. For Americans, it was always a connection away, until Neos began flying from New York JFK to Bari in June 2025.
That one route changes who can realistically spend a long season there. Outside Ostuni, a restored seven-cone trullo with a private pool on about 3,000 square meters of grounds was advertised at €400,000 at the end of October. The Vista Ostuni hotel opened in a restored palazzo in 2025, and the G7 met at Borgo Egnazia the year before.
For retirees, Italy widened its 7% tax regime for foreign pensioners in March 2026 to include towns of up to 30,000 people. Other conditions apply; buying a home alone does not qualify, and the regime is a question for an Italian tax professional.
Dominica never built a resort strip. It is rainforest, hot springs and small villas along the coast, with sperm whales offshore, and it has long been the choice of divers, hikers and sailors. “You can go to this island and be a hiker and find something to do,” Gilezan said. “You can also be a beachgoer like me.”
It stayed quiet for one reason: it was hard to get to. United began service from Newark in February 2025, and the government’s 2026/27 budget targets completion of a new international airport in the second quarter of 2028. Even then, finishing construction is not the same as scheduled flights.
That makes Dominica the most patient of the three. “It’s like buying the first house in the subdivision,” Gilezan said. “You’re taking a risk because you’re not sure the whole thing will take off.”
“These are long positions, and they are adventures,” Gilezan writes in the report. “The catalysts here play out over years, not quarters.” Her shorthand for the difference between being early and being wrong: “Early hurts for a while and then pays. Wrong just hurts.”
Each of these places rewards a visit before a deposit, and each has its own homework. In Zanzibar, tenure differs by project, so buyers need to confirm the project’s approval, the registered property rights and any permit conditions before wiring money. In Puglia, building and cadastral conformity need property-specific checks, because an advertisement is not proof of lawful condition. In Dominica, alien landholding licensing and fees depend on nationality, area and intended use, and an ordinary home does not automatically qualify for citizenship by investment.
“I’m not giving immigration or tax advice,” Gilezan said, and she recommends an independent local lawyer, never the developer’s, for every purchase. Her advice for a first home abroad is to start measured: “Learn the market with your first purchase, and make your bigger bet with your second.” More from Airdomo is available in its Journal.
About Airdomo: Airdomo is the trusted marketplace for buying a home abroad, with developer-certified, live-updated listings across 30 countries and concierge guidance from first search to keys in hand. Co-founded in 2024 by Stephanie Gilezan and Charles Bornheimer, Airdomo connects cross-border buyers, US agents, and international developers at airdomo.com.
Disclaimer: This article is based on information provided by the expert source cited above. It is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or real estate advice. Readers should conduct their own research and consult qualified professionals before making any real estate or financial decisions.
Disclosure: Individuals or companies mentioned may have a commercial relationship with KeyCrew.
