News

Getting a high quality, independent overseas property lawyer is essential if you’re planning to buy a property abroad this summer.  That’s the advice from the News of the World who recently published a guide for Brits looking to buy a foreign home. As well as stressing the need to identify the seller and to be […]

Foreign investors looking to take advantage of the weak pound will push up the prices of luxury real estate in central London by 8 per cent this year.  That’s the conclusion of new research from the international property firm Savills who reported that the average price of luxury homes costing at least £3 million rose by

Continued weak demand for property in Malta is likely to prevent the market from stabilising in the short to medium term, according to a new report from the country’s Central Bank.  The Times of Malta also reports that banks are facing increased credit risks because of their large exposure to the property sector. Supply of

Portugal remains a great place to snap up bargain property as new figures show that the prices in the country are continuing to fall.  The latest figures from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors/Ci Portuguese Housing Market Survey show that poor demand in the country is continuing to push down house prices. Falls in prices

  Real estate in Canada attracting Chinese buyers New research from a leading real estate firm has found that Vancouver is one of the leading cities in the world for Chinese investors to buy property.  Colliers International found that rich Chinese buyers are snapping up property in Canada, the UK and Australia. Property in Canada topping

President Sarkozy re thinks property laws in France Controversial proposals that would have seen around 180,000 British expats pay an additional tax on their property in France have been scrapped by the French President, Nicolas Sarkozy.  The Daily Telegraph reports that even though the French parliament approved the law, the president chose to remove it

  A leading global property firm has urged the Thai government to relax its rules on foreign property ownership in order to stimulate the country’s economy.  CB Richard Ellis believes that by allowing more foreigners to buy property in Thailand, the economy could benefit significantly. Rules should be relaxed to let more foreigners buy property

A new report from a leading Dubai property lawyer has found that property owners in the country are being charged thousands of dirhams in illegal registration fees by developers.  Hadef and Partners claim that fees of AED5,000 (£840) are being charged for registering a property with another AED1,000 (£170) as a handling fee. Developers charging

New research has found that the premium, luxury home market in Australia is being hit hard by a ‘perfect storm’ of forces.  While the affordable and mid-range housing market holds firm, values of luxury homes in Australia are sliding in 2011. Value of luxury overseas property in Australia falls 5.4 per cent The research from

The property market in the Bahamas has been thrown into confusion by the country’s government increasingly relying on property tax valuations rather than agreed purchase prices to determine the level of Stamp Duty payable. That’s the opinion of a leading property lawyer in the country who believes that the policy could ‘really wreak havoc’ on