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March Investment Property Watch

Old favourite Spain nabbed the top spot on TheMoveChannel.com's Investment Property Watch list for March, which charts the level of interest in certain properties and countries from visitors to the site...

Spain - making a comeback

We Brits have had a long love affair with Spain, although some of us have been more faithful than others. Some visitors return year after year, some buy holiday homes and some take the ultimate commitment and move there permanently - there are around 2.8 million legal foreign residents in Spain.

As a result of all this interest, Spain has long been a hotspot for international property investment. The Spanish Ministry of Tourism predicts that more than one million foreigners will set up home on the Spanish coast in the next five years, and this figure is expected to treble by 2025.

There are many low cost airlines that fly direct to Spain which make accessibility from all over Europe cheap and easy. Spain has traditionally been one of the safest markets in which to invest as you could be sure of a strong rental income.

Spain, particularly southern Spain, offers a warm climate year round, allowing for an abundance of outdoor pursuits including swimming and golfing. An excellent infrastructure is already established, including European standards in medical and social security services. Spain still offers value for money and is especially popular with those looking to enjoy their golden years in the sun.

But, since the credit crunch hit, Spain has been one of the worst affected markets as developers got so carried away with the property boom that they are now left with a glut of apartments that are proving difficult to sell. But, despite this, Spain will remain popular with holidaymakers.

Buying in Spain is also a well-trodden path. There is plenty of expert advice on the subject and provided you use a good, independent lawyer, your purchase should be trouble-free.

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, in stark contrast to the known entity that is the Spanish market, is a rather alien experience for international buyers.

The tear-drop shaped tropical island off the southern coast of India was a British colony until gaining independence in 1948 and still retains good relations with the UK.

With over 1,300 km of sugar white beaches and warm Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka is to many the true tropical idyll.

But, the property purchasing climate for foreigners is tough. Whilst they can buy properties, there is a 100 per cent tax on any property bought in their name.

One obvious solution to this is to buy the property in someone else's name, with the safest route being to form a company with a native that then buys the property. Another alternative is to buy a 99-year lease, which brings the tax down to seven per cent.

Sri Lanka has something of a troubled past - nearly three decades of civil war were finally ended in 2002 when a treaty was signed between the Government and rebel forces demanding an independent Tamil state in the north and east of the country. Then, after two years of rebuilding, the Tsunami devastated large swathes of the southern and eastern coastline.

When buying property, it is important to hire a lawyer, who will prepare the contract. No sale is considered final without the legal transfer of ownership from seller to the buyer. The deed of ownership must be checked by the lawyer in the Land Registry.

It is advisable to be in Sri Lanka for the final buy as this way you save additional lawyer's fees, as if you are out of the country, they need to hold a power of attorney issued by the buyer to legally finalize the sale.

Dan Johnson, Director of TheMoveChannel.com said, "Despite the troubled political history, Sri Lanka has many attractions in terms of surroundings, climate and lifestyle which have made it a hotspot for tourists from all over the world.

"The major problem for foreign investors has been the huge taxes levied on property purchases, although there are ways around these if you research the market carefully," he added.

USA

The USA made four appearances in the top ten in March's Investment Property Watch, showing that investors are still very keen to pick up a bargain in America's depressed housing market. Two of the properties in the USA were in Detroit, Michigan, a city which has seen one of the highest rates of repossessions in America.

As in February's list, Detroit generated a huge amount of interest from visitors to the site. A city massively dependent on the car manufacturing industry, Detroit was flooded with cheap credit and people on very low wages were offered enormous loans to buy their own homes, which they had little chance of ever being able to repay.

When the credit crunch hit, these new home owners quickly fell into negative equity and their homes were foreclosed - and the city is now covered with a rash of boarded up properties.

However, the dire state of Detroit's housing market does mean that there are bargains to be had for international cash buyers, who can currently pick up a lot of house for their money. Homes that have been repossessed by the banks can be snapped up at very low prices.

Other movers and shakers

Brazil dropped three places from number three in February to number six in March. Old favourite France made an appearance at number eight, whilst Turkey slipped in at number nine, with a selection of apartment for sale in cosmopolitan Istanbul.

Acting as a set of bookends, Spain appeared at both number one and number ten on March's list.

Table showing March's top investment properties:

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To keep track of TheMoveChannel.com's hottest property investments throughout the month, please visit the Investment Property Portal on our website.

Check out our new commercial properties for sale at our brand new commercial site Commerical.themovechannel.com.

Picture by jule_berlin