Editor’s note: This item is republished with permission from Global Edge Marketing Ltd. The original article can be viewed here.
When I first joined the overseas property industry in 2005, there were queues of buyers 10 deep waiting at exhibition stands to purchase overseas property. In one of my first meetings, someone told me that you had to pay some agents to take a phone call. They were only half joking.
Lots of people simply got lucky by being in the right place at the right time. Conditions in the U.K. at that time created a "perfect storm." They may not be repeated for years but here are some of the factors to look out for when considering which overseas property buyer markets to consider.
Necessary conditions
To make the short-list a destination should meet two criteria:
1. Have either a relatively high per-capita income (Sweden, Holland, etc.) or have a growing upper-middle class who have a high per-capita income (Russia, China).
2. Be easily and cost-effectively reached by air, train or road.
Ideally, the destination should also have a colder climate, with unreliable summers to give buyers a further incentive to vacation and buy property abroad.
"Lucky" conditions
A number of buyer markets meet the above conditions, but what is really important is what is happening at the margin to asset prices and currency movements. It is very difficult to persuade even the richest people to spend when they are losing money.
The U.K. boom coincided with a rally in the value of the British pound and a huge domestic property boom.
Although countries like the U.K. are still solid markets, we are unlikely to see a return to the crazy conditions of 2005. Arguably, the only markets where these conditions might be met are China, Canada and Australia, which all have strong currencies and booming property markets, but unfortunately some of these are not convenient enough for most of our readers.
Copyright 2010 Global Edge Marketing Ltd.
