Overseas property interest remains strong

UK investors remain confident about international property markets and are keen to purchase abroad during 2008.

That is the view of the National Association of Estate Agents International and Federation of Overseas Property Developers, Agents and Consultants (NAEAI/FOPDAC), which finds consumer confidence has not be shaken by recent events.

According to the organisation properties in established destinations remain among the most popular, with countries such as France, Portugal, Italy and Cyprus expected to perform particularly well in 2008.

This view is supported by research from exchange specialists Foreign Currency Direct (FDC), which finds there was an 8.2 per cent increase in the number of overseas property transactions in the last quarter of 2007, compared with 2006.

"With all its bad press we know Spanish property is taking longer to sell than normal, but British buyers are still in love with the idea of a place on the Costas," said Robin Haynes of FDC.

"Meanwhile, with property prices having fallen in the USA and the dollar at its lowest level against the pound since the 1980s interest is escalating again in the Florida market," he added.

The robustness of the market is partially being driven by the diversity of British buyers, according to financial services company Baydonhill.

"The key is the diverse selection of buyers who look to purchase . . . from second home owners to those relocating for retirement," said Vanessa Bird of Baydonhill.

"The huge variety present here – in terms of age, financial circumstances and motivation for buying – is the driver behind the constant supply of purchasers."

There is also a burgeoning interest in more exotic destinations, with countries including Brazil, Venezuela and Thailand complementing existing interest in eastern European countries.

"The challenge for these markets is to go beyond the two-to-three year popularity span which so many are experiencing," concluded Ms Bird.