UK Ferry Tickets

The way to a fast buck and an idyllic lifestyle is to buy a home abroad, according to the property experts. We all dream of starting a new life or retiring somewhere hot, don’t we? In the meantime, we can always rent the place out for a fortune.

Of course, buying property abroad doesn’t always go according to plan.

Nigel Farrell and Nippi Singh famously discovered, in the television programme ‘A Place in France’, that although the country is great to visit, buying and renovating property in France has its challenges, to say the least.

I have a friend who sells holidays to Greece and Cyprus. He complains that some areas of the countries have literally been destroyed by continual building work. Lots of Brits bought up villas, thinking they would cover the mortgage by renting them out and have a tidy investment to boot.

“The first thing they did when they bought up was ring me and ask how much I would pay them to sell their villa in my brochure,” he recalls.

“They were absolutely flabbergasted when I told them we weren’t interested. But the market is saturated with villas and we can’t rent them all. Everyone is pushing them through the Internet but plenty of people are catching a cold. Never mind an investment, they’ll be lucky to get their money back on the properties.”

Buying abroad can be a marvellous investment, but there are pitfalls.

Guest Article by Jeremy Skidmore

Thursday, March 30th, 2006