Falling Prices Elevate London Property
For years property investors have been searching the world for the “next best thing.” Countries like Spain, Portugal and Morocco have all been overseas property favourites. Romania and Brazil are current favourites and in today’s changing economic climate, the latest addition is the UK. In particular, the luxury property market in London has once again become affordable.
Two recent factors have led to this change – the slide in sterling and decline in property prices. The pound is now worth much less than it was only a year ago. This difference in exchange has meant that foreigners can now enter the London property market for a fraction of what it would have cost them only months ago.
The fall in sterling also means that expatriate Britons who had planned to live out their retirement overseas in locations such as Spain, Cyprus or Portugal suddenly found themselves struggling to make monthly payments on fixed incomes. Many have given up the battle, sold their foreign homes and come back into the British market, armed with strong foreign currencies.
Knight Frank estimates price declines in London have reached 22% on average and there is a good chance that they will fall even further. Combined with the fact that in 2008, the euro has increased 30% against the pound, the US dollar 35% and the Japanese yen 66%, the current discount on London luxury property is a substantial one when compared to only 1 or 2 years ago.
As an illustration of the savings to be had, the Financial Times recently used the example of a London property that was on the market in September 2007 for £3 million. Its present asking price is £2.4 million. However, if the buyer was paying in euros, the original cost of €4.3 million would now be €2.5 million, an overall savings of 30% when the exchange rate is factored in. The same property would offer a 55% savings for the investor dealing in yen.
Therefore, the luxury London property market is again attracting attention from many of those who just a few years ago believed it overpriced. “The recent slide of sterling has created both winners and losers,” said James Gonzalez, Market Analyst at Obelisk, when asked about the phenomenon. “In a way, the UK is re-emerging as a prime luxury market in its own right.”
For more information on overseas property investment and to find out about Obelisk's latest projects, contact Obelisk free on 0808 160 0670 (UK) or 1800 932 514 (IRE).
Obelisk also produces its Absolute Guide Series which contains the most recent investment information on 30 of the world’s top emerging markets. They can be downloaded free of charge from at http://www.absoluteguideseries.com
Email: info@obeliskinternational.com or visit our website: http://www.obeliskinvestmentproperty.com
For press enquires, please contact Obelisk’s marketing department on (+34) 952 820 319 or email press@obeliskinternational.com
Two recent factors have led to this change – the slide in sterling and decline in property prices. The pound is now worth much less than it was only a year ago. This difference in exchange has meant that foreigners can now enter the London property market for a fraction of what it would have cost them only months ago.
The fall in sterling also means that expatriate Britons who had planned to live out their retirement overseas in locations such as Spain, Cyprus or Portugal suddenly found themselves struggling to make monthly payments on fixed incomes. Many have given up the battle, sold their foreign homes and come back into the British market, armed with strong foreign currencies.
Knight Frank estimates price declines in London have reached 22% on average and there is a good chance that they will fall even further. Combined with the fact that in 2008, the euro has increased 30% against the pound, the US dollar 35% and the Japanese yen 66%, the current discount on London luxury property is a substantial one when compared to only 1 or 2 years ago.
As an illustration of the savings to be had, the Financial Times recently used the example of a London property that was on the market in September 2007 for £3 million. Its present asking price is £2.4 million. However, if the buyer was paying in euros, the original cost of €4.3 million would now be €2.5 million, an overall savings of 30% when the exchange rate is factored in. The same property would offer a 55% savings for the investor dealing in yen.
Therefore, the luxury London property market is again attracting attention from many of those who just a few years ago believed it overpriced. “The recent slide of sterling has created both winners and losers,” said James Gonzalez, Market Analyst at Obelisk, when asked about the phenomenon. “In a way, the UK is re-emerging as a prime luxury market in its own right.”
For more information on overseas property investment and to find out about Obelisk's latest projects, contact Obelisk free on 0808 160 0670 (UK) or 1800 932 514 (IRE).
Obelisk also produces its Absolute Guide Series which contains the most recent investment information on 30 of the world’s top emerging markets. They can be downloaded free of charge from at http://www.absoluteguideseries.com
Email: info@obeliskinternational.com or visit our website: http://www.obeliskinvestmentproperty.com
For press enquires, please contact Obelisk’s marketing department on (+34) 952 820 319 or email press@obeliskinternational.com
Labels: Brazil, investment, London, overseas, property, romania
posted by Alison Kane at 11:00 am
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home