If you want to buy a holiday aboard or are looking to relocate overseas to beat the UK housing market, we have put together a guide to show which countries offer the best overseas home experience in terms of location, price and value for money. Premier Lofts will help you get more bang for your buck this year.
It has become clear that property values have increased the most over in Hong Kong, this is followed by Malta and countries located in Eastern Europe.
On the flip side, Knight Frank conducted research which found the property in Saudi Arabia is losing value at the fastest and highest rate of all the countries.
You will have to accept that you are far more likely to pay a premium if you are wanting to buy a property in a tourist-friendly location as these tend to be far more desirable for Brits – many of the people will speak English. For example, if you were hoping to buy in a place like Malta – the European country where the property value is increasing at the highest rate – a holiday home in the capital city of Vallentta would ask for a higher price than if you were to look for a holiday home in the small central village of Lija.
Will Brexit have an impact on buying overseas?
If you choose to buy your property in a EU country, there is a likely chance that Brexit could affect your purchase. We will have to wait until the 29th of March 2019 and whether or not a deal is agreed on to see what will actually happen, but the mere uncertainty created by Brexit is affecting the property market domestically and in the EU.
The current political climate is far from he only obstacle hindering activity with a shortage of stock continuing to present potential buyers with a rather limited choice. Meanwhile, stretched affordability is pricing many people out.
It is not yet known how overseas mortgages might be affected. Some experts believe they may not even really see any effect at all, but it is still something to bear in mind.
What happens when you buy property aboard?
If you want to buy a property abroad, you will need to seek out an overseas mortgage. All of the main UK banks on the high street offer overseas mortgages, but this will only be the case if they operate in the countries where they have offices.
Even if choose to use a UK bank to help you in arranging an overseas mortgage, you may have to deal with the foreign branch of the bank once you have actually taken out the mortgage.
Another option would be to deal with a local bank within the county that you are buying the property – you could seek the help of a mortgage broker to set this up.
You may find that some overseas rates will be far lower than the UK. However, you should bear in mind that overseas brokers are not covered by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), so you might not be able get compensation if you feel you have been given.
There are also risks in borrowing in a foreign currency, as exchange rates fluctuations could increase the cost of any loan you take out. Some countries may require a higher deposit – for example, overseas buyers in Spain are expected to fork out 30% to 40% of the property price. In the UK the starting ask is usually about 10%, but you will get a better deal if you go higher of course.
