COMPETITOR: Property in Spain “best ever” investment

House prices in Spain have displayed the lowest rise in three years – 13.4% in the past 12 months. The initial sign of a predicted equity slowdown soared to 25% in the Costa Calida region in 2004. It averaged 18% in other second home coastal areas.

New figures for the average price per square meter for new and “used” homes between September 2004 and 2005 showed a slowdown which began in the long-time “boom” Spanish property market. read more

Posted on: Spain

October 10, 2006

Burgundy and Loire Valley explored

Burgundy and Centre regions own some of the finest wines and culinary delights in the world. Centre, more known as the Loire Valley, is already famous with expats. But the Brits have yet to be aware of Burgundy which is filled with places such as Dijon, Chateaneuf and Bourgon Chablis. Located near Paris, the regions are two of the biggest in the country. Loire Valley has a population of almost 2.5 million while Burgundy, or Bourgogne to the French, has around 1.6 million population.

The Loire Valley consists of six departments: Eure et Loir in the north of the region; below it, Loiret and Loir et Cher; in the south-east, Cher; Indre at the south, bordering the Limousin region; and south-west is Indre et Loire. Nearest to Paris is Eure et Loire which has been influenced by the Ile-de-France region to its east. Chartres, its main city, is populated with about 40,000 people. Its two cathedrals and fine art museums with religious tapestries display clear ties to its Christian past.

The Loire river is the longest in France and runs through the region and the prefecture capital, Orleans. In 2000, UNESCO bestowed world heritage site status on the picturesque Loire Valley.

Posted on: France

October 9, 2006

New Property Laws in Italy

Those who are considering to buy an Italian property will have to be conscious of the latest finance laws governing the buying and selling of residential property between private individuals.

The actual sales price can now be declared by the buyer in the notary act of sale but taxes are paid only on the re-valued cadastral value. Computation of the notary fees will be based on the real sales price but a twenty per cent discount will be given. A cadastre is a public register that shows the details of ownership and value of land mainly for taxation purposes. read more

Posted on: Italy

Getting to know the Turkish Riviera

Turkey’s Aegean and Mediterranean coastlines has truly become popular with the British property buyers and so Paul Beasely took time to review the ‘Turkish Riviera’.

A great part of the infrastructure in Turkey is on a stretch of the Turkish coastline, running several hundred kilometres from the central Aegean resorts to the Mediterranean resort of Alanya, wholly known as the ‘Turkish Riviera’. On this area, summer temperatures can reach or even exceed 30°C and winter temperatures are rarely below 15°C, sea colour and quality of resorts considerably differ.

Turkey’s foreign tourism started in the central and southern Aegean coast, where tourists are enticed by its pine-green forests, turquoise waters and Ancient Greek archaeological sites.

Reaching a century of tourism, Cesme, the westernmost town in Turkey, is in close proximity to Hios in Greece. Unsurprisingly, Grecian influence is apparent in the town where it is built around two streets of old Greek houses, as well as other influences like the Ottoman-era fountains and a Genoese castle. Cesme’s value is as a low-key resort. The coves at Altinkum (‘Golden Sand’ in Turkish), nine kilometres of the town, are attractive and fairly free of large buildings. A three-bedroom semi-detached duplex villa a few minutes from Cesme’s town beaches costs almost £61,000.

Posted on: Turkey

Revealed: the British love affair with France

Despite often-voiced prejudices, the British are infatuated with French culture and many plan to cross over the English Channel in pursuit of a better lifestyle for their retirement.

Although the economy might be stronger and unemployment figures are at its lowest levels for decades compared with growing unrest in the French boulevards, it appears that Brits of all ages romanticise about living in France.

A survey of over 1,000 people, which comprised part of the French Wines Week report, revealed that 37 per cent of Britons would like to move south of the Channel when they reach retirement age, compared to only 30 per cent who wished to remain in the UK.

Posted on: France

October 5, 2006

Interest soaring in Portugal and Cape Verde

The current specialist today, HIFX, has just released one of its reports on the British hottest property destinations all over the world. This summer, the reports see Portugal and Cape Verde plunging into a tourist destination with most of the Brits opting to buy property here. According to HIF, since March of this year, there have been so many inquiries by Brits regarding the properties here in these places.

Portugal is still one of the Brits’ respected allies and is still clearly one of the favorite places to go to, and the UK still has its heart set on Portugal as evidenced by the July’s overseas property inquiries at HIFX. The mild south coast – the Algarve- is still one of the most popular destinations to boot. For seasonal buy to let purchases, the properties here makes it very viable for British investors.

Posted on: Portugal

October 3, 2006

SIPPs experts warn on risks and rewards

Insurance giant Norwich Union raised its concerns with the FSA on the marketing of residential property intended for investment into a SIPP (self-invested personal pensions), when simplified pension allows this benefit to rule.

Norwich is concerned that some of the SIPPs’ marketing is over-emphasizing the benefits but not the possible pitfalls. Adverts say that by buying residential property through a SIPP, customers will “effectively” reduce the cost by 40% due to the tax breaks. However, the adverts fail to warn the possibility of a substantial tax bill for investment in overseas properties or that the investor could lose control over his/ her property.