Grampa Posted April 4, 2014 Report Share Posted April 4, 2014 http://www.theguardian.com/money/2011/jan/30/buy-to-let-repossessed-homes Would any of you consider buying into this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richlist Posted April 4, 2014 Report Share Posted April 4, 2014 SPAIN I've had property in Spain for over 10 years and have seen the good times & the bad. Spanish prices are very low at the moment and with the economic situation its difficult to see when it might improve significanty. There are 000's of unsold new properties, partly built properties and even more 'resales' available. Price is everything and you can still sell anything in Spain at the right price. The Euro exchange rate has worked in a sellers favour. Property bought a few years ago at 1.5 Euro to the Pound now sells at 1.10 Euro to the Pound so sellers can sell at considerably less than they bought for and still make a profit. If & when the Euro/Pound exchange rate improves it will be bad news for todays buyers though. USA Big country with massive price differences geographically & economically. I worked in Detroit / Chicago in the late 1990's. Detriot is so run down & derelict its difficult to envisage the scale of the recovery needed to make it an attractive/ desirable place that it once was to live. I wouldn't buy there even at todays prices. There are probably other areas in the US that represent good value but the time & effort needed to do the homework wouldn't interest me. Good luck if you are considering either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melboy Posted April 4, 2014 Report Share Posted April 4, 2014 I know Denver, Col. well and property prices are currently still stable but they did rise weekly back in 2001. My Daughter managed to sell her property in 2007 for a very good price and just before the big crash in prices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kerbut Posted April 4, 2014 Report Share Posted April 4, 2014 Having just come back from 10 weeks in Spain the only poverty I have seen there were the 2 professional beggars outside Mercadona and Lidl in Benamadena (a husband and wife team both using mobile phones ), there were tower cranes being put up for more properties to be built, thousands of euros being spent on new road projects , I certainly don't think Spain has had it ,my son and myself are looking at buying a couple more properties there ,looking at Nerja and Benalmadena where a 70,s built apartment on the 4th floor ,3 bed ,2 bath can be bought for 50000 eur and a community charge (which is gardeners , all water, rates ,pool maintenance and all public area cleaning ) is 57 eur per month Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richlist Posted April 4, 2014 Report Share Posted April 4, 2014 There are differences between the areas/ regions in Spain as there are anywhere else in the world. I put a lot of effort into working out the viability of buying properties to let in my part of Spain a few years ago. I came to the conclusion that the return on investment just didn't make good business sense. Even at todays depressed values it still doesn't make sense when I can make more investing the money in UK property. Summary * Property prices and their running costs are lower in Spain BUT rents are also considerably lower. * Spanish taxes however are higher. * Capital appreciation is currently non existant and a long, long way off. * Some say prices have further to fall. * With the poor Euro exchange rate buyers will take a big hit if exchange rates improve. * If you go for holiday lets people want top quality, high spec.....thats expensive to maintain & regularly replace. There were a few expats on my development who bought 2 or 3 properties each a few years back with a view to letting /investing. What a poor investment that has turned out to be for them. Their annual rental returns barely pay for the running costs of the appartments and there has certainly been no capital appreciation. Whist buying in Spain can look attractive and will suit some who want a holiday home, don't assume because its cheap its going to be a good investment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanshelly Posted April 6, 2014 Report Share Posted April 6, 2014 we have a house in the usa too although i don't think i'd consider detroit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mortitia Posted April 8, 2014 Report Share Posted April 8, 2014 Having been to Detroit and seen slums worse than anything in the UK potential civil unrest in the black areas a BTL there would not be for me. I don't think I could do BTL anywhere where I did not understand the type of client and how they make their money to pay rent or the legal system. Even Spain seems a nightmare regarding property ownership and development - if you don't know the right people. The British model of BTL does not seem to work anywhere else IMO. A safer bet maybe buying an up market New York apartment and renting that out - but cost must be similar to that of London. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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