Croatia as a Place to buy

Voodoo I feel that you saw Istria when it's at it's best, in the off-season. It is very pretty, friendly and mellow in the winter/autumn, however come summer it's a madhouse. I was there the end of January (flew out of Pula) and as bad as traffic was on a so-so saturday, I've been there in July and it's manic. Beautiful spot though!

As for buying property in Croatia, I would feel more comfortable there than in Bulgaria, Romania or Montenegro. The first point is that its easier to get there (I anticipate that once Croatia enters the EU, Ryanair will have direct flight to Zagreb, the capital city).
Other then this, I think the mentality of people is closer to the Irish.
I would not bother buying property in Dubrovnik or Istria as the regions are over-saturated. I would try in the Kvarner (i.e. around Rijeka toward Istria) or there. Rijeka has a huge airport which is currently not used at 10% of its capacity. It is less then 2 hours drive from Zagreb and about 1.5 hour from Pula. The nature is lovely too.
Will be looking for pretty there soon.