This month's major surprise was, however, the popularity of apartments in Albania, particularly apartments in Tirana, Albania. With most investor interest focused on Eastern European markets like Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia, Albania is shaping up to be this year's dark horse.

Real estate in emerging locations proved to be massively popular again in January on TheMoveChannel.com's top 10 list of hot investment properties, with far-flung destinations dominating the site.

January's top ten proves once again that investors are shunning well-established markets like Spain and France, preferring instead to take calculated risks on cheaper properties in expanding markets across the globe.

Last month's top property came from Bulgaria, and this month there's been no change.

This month's major surprise was, however, the popularity of apartments in Albania, particularly apartments in Tirana, Albania. With most investor interest focused on Eastern European markets like Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia, Albania is shaping up to be this year's dark horse.