For more than two decades, I’ve traveled the world in search of exceptional real estate opportunities.
Again and again, I’ve seen the same principle at work: The strongest opportunities emerge where demand is growing but supply cannot keep up.
This is not just a real estate idea. It is the property-market version of one of Warren Buffett’s most powerful investing concepts.
He calls it a “moat.”
And on a stretch of coastline that has emerged as Europe’s New Riviera, that moat has been carved into the landscape.
I’m talking about Montenegro’s Bay of Kotor, where mountains, water and centuries of protected history place hard limits on what can be built.
Europe’s New Riviera: Montenegro’s Bay of Kotor, where mountains sweep down to calm, lake-like water.
If you’re unfamiliar with RETA, it’s the group I founded to bring together like-minded folks who understand the incredible opportunities in international real estate.
Using the collective-buying power of all RETA members, I can negotiate exclusive deals from developers.
The new deal I’ve found there has an extraordinary natural advantage protecting it…
The Edge Warren Buffett Looks For
The investing concept of a moat was popularized by billionaire Warren Buffett and refers to an enduring competitive advantage that can protect your investment and supercharge profits.
Buffett’s own investments offer clear examples. Coca-Cola has a globally recognized brand that competitors cannot reproduce. GEICO built a cost advantage by selling insurance directly to customers and cutting out middlemen. Both companies have moats.
You can achieve the same kind of competitive advantage when you buy the right kind of real estate.
If you look at the most expensive real estate in the world, it all has two things in common: It’s in high demand and it’s in short supply.
In many coastal destinations, developers can simply move farther along the shore and build more. As demand rises, new projects spring up to meet it, and the scarcity begins to disappear.
But around the Bay of Kotor, supply cannot expand so freely.
Here, the mountains, the water and centuries of protected history stand in the way.
That is where Kotor’s real estate moat begins.
Montenegro sits on the Adriatic between Croatia and Albania, directly across the water from Italy. Its spectacular Bay of Kotor forms the heart of Europe’s New Riviera.
The Moat on Europe’s New Riviera
Geography is a big barrier. In the Bay of Kotor nature and time conspired to create a masterpiece…not to make it easy for builders. Dramatic mountains sweep down to the sea, softened by the green of forests.
Much of the prime land has been snapped up by the big-name luxury brands for all-inclusive resorts or lavish boutique hotels.
Plus, you have tight permitting, for instance Kotor is a UNESCO-heritage site. Building is tightly restricted.
Those restrictions preserve the beauty that brings visitors and international buyers here. At the same time, they make high-quality new real estate incredibly scarce.
Future developers cannot manufacture more coastline. They cannot move the mountains or remove the historic old towns.
That is what makes this moat so powerful.
Kotor’s UNESCO-protected old town sits between the mountains and the bay. Strict building controls help preserve its centuries-old character—and keep high-quality new real estate scarce.
A Moat Needs Something Worth Protecting
Scarcity alone does not make a good investment.
A barren rock in the middle of nowhere may be scarce. But if nobody wants to own there, that scarcity has little value.
The real opportunity comes when restricted supply meets growing demand.
That is what is happening around the Bay of Kotor.
The ultra-wealthy arrived first.
Billions of dollars poured into Porto Montenegro, Portonovi and Luštica Bay—luxury marina communities and resorts designed for superyacht owners and the international jet set.
You’ll find one-beds listing in the luxury marina developments for €850,000…two-beds for €1.2 million, and nightly hotel rates run into the thousands of euro.
But for the millions of affluent people who want comfort and luxury at a price they can afford, there is very little choice.
That’s the gap our new opportunity is designed to fill—and I’ll open it to RETA members on Wednesday, August 26.
Porto Montenegro is one of the luxury marina communities that put this bay on the international map. Now the mobile affluent are following the ultra-wealthy.
Just Two Deals in 11 Years
I’ve been seriously scouting the Bay of Kotor for a deal since 2015.
In all that time, I have found only two deals here that made the RETA grade. That speaks to the power of the scarcity here.
The first came in 2024, when I brought RETA members an incredible deal, where they could own two-bed condos from €348,356. In March this year, a two-bed condo RETA members could own for €354,201 listed for €519,115. That’s an uplift of €164,914 in less than two years.
Now, after years of searching, I’ve found a second opportunity.
This is a beautiful, Tuscan-inspired community set among the mountains close to Kotor’s old town.
The planned amenities include an infinity pool, spa, state-of-the-art gym, yoga and Pilates studio, kids club, entertainment room, restaurant and firepit. A shuttle will connect owners to the beach club.
And the RETA-only pricing is extraordinary:
- We have stunning two-bed condos from €362,663. I expect these will be worth €560,000 five years after delivery. That’s a gain of €197,337.
- We also have stylish studio apartments from a crazy €168,925. I expect these will be worth €260,000 five years after delivery. That’s a gain of €91,075.
We also have exclusive developer financing and an attractive payment plan.
Amenities will include a firepit, state-of-the-art gym, spa, infinity pool, yoga and Pilates studio, kids club, entertainment room, a restaurant and shuttle to the beach club.
The Moat Strategy in Action
The Bay of Kotor is exactly what I look for: a destination where demand is growing but competing supply cannot easily follow.
Kotor’s mountains, protected history and scarce prime land create barriers no future developer can simply remove.
And the new opportunity I’ve found gives RETA members the opportunity to buy inside that moat at exclusive off-market pricing.
On August 26, I’ll open the deal to RETA members. More on that soon.
Wishing you good real estate investing,
