Once you have chosen your ideal location and have done plenty of research to weigh up all your possible options, the next step is to set your feet on the terra firma and start viewing potential overseas property investment.
There are several ways to find your potential overseas property investments, the most popular one is to register with a real estate agent who deals with that particular area, you can find these advertised in the UK or advertised on the Internet.
There are many overseas property websites and finding the right one can be tiresome, but it is necessary to do the most amount of ground work prior to choosing an overseas agent, this is a very good first port of call.
Once you have registered with an agent, a professional real estate company will build up a portfolio of properties that suit you requirements and budget, make sure they adhere to your criteria. Once you are happy with the portfolios that have been sent to you, your next step would be to visit your region and start viewing your overseas property investment, like we mentioned before.
Now a lot of companies will offer subsidised inspection or discovery trips, these can range from £1 to £200, if your are planning to visit an area of Europe.
Is this a good direction to take? Personally I like to visit an area under my own steam, that way I can get a very good interpretation of the investment by making appointments with many overseas real estate agents as possible.
Some companies will railroad in to believing their service is the best, of course they are only interested in your hard earned cash and don't want to lose control of their client. The respectable companies will honour your decision and make the same time and effort to give advice on overseas property investment for that region.
Make sure when you look at a property you also spend time taking a tour around the area, go at different times of the day, if its a resale look for other For Sale signs as you may see some properties being advertised privately, this way you can save on the huge sums of commissions some overseas property agents charge.
Remember they will sometimes try and oversell you a property and its important that you do not get carried away, don't be made to believe that it will sell that day, even that week, as your next step is to speak to all the independent advisor's, lawyers, mortgage brokers, rental companies, you will also want the know all the associated costs no?
Now, a good English speaking overseas property lawyer will be working for you and you only, you are the client and your best interest are taken into consideration. They will give you a presentation on what buying an overseas property investment in that region involves, remember the research before is key, make sure you have a list of questions written down, so that nothing is forgotten. Never go to a so called independent lawyer that has been recommended by an estate agent, most likely they are in the agents pocket.
Overseas property mortgage advice for me is the most important. In some countries the developers only require a small fraction of the property price until completion, the advice that you get is only relevant to the time of speaking to that broker. So this means that the amount funded by the bank can decrease which involves more money that you have to cough up, that previously was not accounted for. I have seen offers change in less than a month, I have seen so many people lose their deposits two years down the line because they cant complete. Prime example, areas of Spain I have seen reputable developers go into administration as some many purchasers have defaulted, as the deposit was only 15%, guess what now the banks don't even want to lend to UK ex-pats. This is bad for everybody, so financial advice is paramount, what were to happen if you fell out of employment, borrowing in another country or even a mortgage in the UK can affect your status, ask the questions.
Overseas property rentals, this is always a grey area as so many companies can differ on the rates offered, I would get as many comparisons as possible and work on the worst case scenario. In today's climate it not often property can be made self sufficient. Calculate your running and management costs and factor this into your budget, you also have periods when you will have no renters. Long term lets is a good option, but you will never get personal enjoyment from it, is just a cash cow. Guaranteed rental for me has long been a myth, if offered by a developer you are paying for a over priced product, read the small print. Recently I purchased a property with a guaranteed rental from an independent company, this goes against everything I have just told you, well somebody has to learn from my mistakes!!! To say the contract wasn't worth the paper it was printed on is an understatement, subsequently the whole sorry mess is in the hands of my lawyers, lesson learned, guaranteed rental, myth!!!
After you have collated all the information, sleep on it, go home, take your time to make a decision.I have made and seen other people make some terrible mistake buying on impulse. You don't do it in your home country why do it when purchasing overseas property? Make sure that your brain is not left at the tarmac at Alicante airport.
What I'm not trying to do is scare people away from buying overseas property, its meant to be enjoyable, whatever your reason, head or heart.
Please make sure you do all of your research before you look at anything as when buying overseas property it can sometimes be the second biggest purchase you make in your lifetime.
This was the sole reason we are launching Jigsaw Overseas, this is a dedicated website for people wishing to or have already purchased an overseas property.
We are going to have as much information on the site so people can make their own informed decisions by speaking to the relevant people before hand.
We are not associated with the sale of overseas property nor do we market companies that do.
Support the launch and enjoy our directory.
The Jigsaw Overseas Team
