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Where has all the fun gone? - 3 December 2007

Posted by Paul Collins No comments


Live the dream

Working in the overseas property industry, I see just about every possible magazine to do with the business from both a trade and a consumer point of view. After more than five years in the business, I have, like many others, trained myself to pick up on even the smallest mention of buying property abroad from 50 paces…

There is no doubt that the trends, processes and habits of buying overseas have changed markedly, and along with them has the advertising and marketing of them. It is now quite difficult to open a newspaper property section or a specialist magazine without coming across a large proportion of the advertising talking about capital returns and rental yields that are either promised or hinted at.

The reasons for this are quite simple, and quite logical. Overseas property is now often seen as a great way of investing money, and given the recent price drops reported in the UK housing market, could well become even more popular.

At the same time, the investment market is exactly the kind of lucrative high net-worth individuals that agents and developers are keen to target and get as their clients. All of this means that advertising is geared towards this end of the market.

The important thing to remember is that even when buying an overseas property is why you are doing it. It would be easy to start off looking for a family weekend and holiday home in a nicer climate, and end up with ideas to become some kind of Eastern Europe rentals magnate.

There is no doubt that buying an overseas property and renting it out to help cover the costs when you are not using it is an intelligent and efficient way to plan, but this does not make you an investor in the truest sense. There is a real temptation to get carried away with the economic possibilities and lose sight of the real reason why the overseas property industry has grown so well in the past ten years – fun.

Most of us consider buying overseas as a way to recapture the joys and idealism of holidays. Personally, this means looking out over a mountain sunset somewhere in the Pyrenees, with a nice bottle of red and the warmth of the day slowly dissipating around me. For others this is sitting on a balcony over the coast of Spain. The most important thing for many of us is the dream of living overseas, for at least part of the year. Investing in property overseas is also a good way of maximizing on some of the best opportunities there are available. Make sure you examine your motivations for buying before you step into the market and if, like me, you are looking for the dream, don’t lose sight of it.


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