Overseas Property Investments

Overseas property investments have yielded spectacular gains over the last few years. Cashing in on a strong pound, UK citizens have been buying into many markets in which, by UK standards, property prices have appeared relatively cheap. These have included evergreen favourites such as Spain and France as well as more speculative emerging markets such as Bulgaria, Romania, and Estonia. With property prices going up around the world, most overseas property investments have proved profitable. And this has been especially so in the EU accession countries. Many overseas property investments are bought with both profit and personal use in mind, with buyers looking for capital growth, rental income, plus the opportunity to use properties as holiday homes � and perhaps eventually as retirement homes. Recent surveys have consistently shown that millions of British people aspire to own overseas property investments. First time buyers, frustrated by high UK prices, have seen overseas property investments as a way of gaining a foothold on the property ladder, while the country�s very many buy to let landlords see overseas property investments as a means of diversifying their holdings.

Buying Property

Of course, buying property abroad is not without its problems. First there are often language difficulties to overcome, and unfamiliarity with local laws and customs, and with foreign banking and currency exchange requirements. When buying property the registration of ownership can be less organised, and reliable, than in the UK. In many systems the process of transferring ownership must be placed in the hands of a notary � who will be a government official. His or her interest will be mainly in seeing that the paperwork complies with the law. This means those buying property abroad are always advised to appoint their own English speaking lawyer with specialist local knowledge. The costs associated with buying property abroad can also be substantially higher than UK property investors are used to paying, with stamp duty, agents� and notaries� fees, registration fees, and VAT bills to meet.

Property abroad

Letting property abroad can also bring difficulties for owners living hundreds, perhaps thousands of miles away. This is especially so for property abroad bought mainly with the holiday let market in mind. Here, the constant coming and goings of tenants mean there must always be somebody on hand to deal with minor problems, with exchange of keys, cleaning and other such issues. As in all property investment, finding a good location is essential when buying property abroad. In the case of holiday lets this will include closeness to airports and other forms of transport as well proximity to leisure, sporting and other facilities. So the key to success in buying property abroad is good and thorough research, caution, and involvement of trusted professional advisers.

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