Print

April 2009 Top of the Props: USA today and tomorrow...

Friday, May 08, 2009

Following the same pattern as last month, the USA reigned supreme on the TheMoveChannel.com's April Top of the Props chart. Europe also features strongly in the chart, suggesting that investors are less willing to take risks on far flung destinations and instead want to put their money into tried and tested markets...

Our Top of the Props chart provides a monthly pop chart snapshot of the most popular countries on the site and last month, the USA triumphed, attracting the most interest from visitors to the site.

Take advantage of USA's GO Zone

Now that the United States is entering the lowest point in its property market cycle and people are getting more and more serious about selling off their real estate stock no matter how cheaply, there are more opportunities than ever for investors.

Savvy buyers will be able to snap up a deal at well below market value that could have strong rental potential and, if you go into it with a long term view, could net you a healthy return.

If you are looking for a real bargain, America's GO Zone could still be well worth considering. The Gulf Opportunity (GO) Zone covers the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina - including the states of Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana - and offers Government incentives for investors to purchase buy-to-let housing stock.

The incentives are for a limited period only and some end this year. As you will be buying property on land subsidised by the US Government, you will be getting excellent value for money.

One such development is Bayside Park in Biloxi, Mississippi, where property prices start from just £68,000. A booming casino industry is driving incredible growth across the entire region with 11 casinos are up and running and several more in the pipeline.

Go Zone Investment Incentives allow you to write off 50 per cent of the property's assessed value in the first year. As an active investor, you can write off the deductions against ordinary income and capital gains, but this may well run out on December 31^st this year.

There is also strong rental demand in the Biloxi area, with a shortage of 64,000 homes so rental potential will be very strong.

Pick up a Portuguese property

Portugal grabbed second place in April's chart. Buying property in Portugal is no longer an exotic pursuit - especially for Brits and Europeans and areas such as the Algarve, the country's southernmost region, have seen an explosion of resorts.

Portugal has been one of the countries most affected by the global economic crisis, according to a report by Cushman & Wakefield, a global real estate solutions company.

Where there is crisis, there is opportunity and bargain hungry buyers have been sniffing around Portugal's tourist hotspots, hoping to snap up a great deal with strong rental potential.

Tourism is likely to remain strong in Portugal long term and thus rental potential looks strong. Development of a solid, upscale tourism sector is part of the Portuguese Government's economic growth strategy.

The sector's GDP contribution is expected to climb from 15.6 per cent in 2009 to 18 per cent by 2019, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.

Currently, some 975,000 jobs in the country are tourism related. This number is expected to grow to 1,153,000 jobs, accounting for 22.1 per cent of the country's total employment by 2019.

Dan Johnson, Director of TheMoveChannel.com, said "I love Portugal as a lifestyle destination. The beaches are among the finest in Europe and the golf is absolutely first class, with a huge choice of superb courses in a remarkably varied and dramatic landscape, at prices that often undercut Spain significantly.

"The same isn't always true of the property - there are some exceptionally well-heeled developments both on the Algarve and in the Lisbon area, where multi-millionaire status is a must if you want to buy.

"But while the rich enjoy their exclusive lifestyle, in the main the Portuguese economy has been in the doldrums for a number of years and the current forecasts don't exactly paint a picture of rampant growth on the near horizon.

"Areas that don't have such a long pedigree of attracting foreign buyers still have very affordable prices, and with the whole of Europe looking expensive due to the high euro exchange rate, Portugal offers a decent long term investment bet, but more importantly great value for a fabulous lifestyle," he added.

Other movers and shakers

The land of la dolce vita look the bronze medal in Aprils chart, leaving the United Arab Emirates - long the poster child of property booms - trailing in fourth place.

Turkey and Spain took fifth and sixth places respectively, showing that, despite media scaremongering about the pain in Spain, it still proves popular with overseas investors and will likely never fall truly out of favour.

Old favourite France took seventh place, with Egypt yapping at its heels at number eight. Surprise entry Thailand, in a rare appearance in the top ten, took ninth place and Greece rounded off April's Top of the Props chart at number ten.

April's Top of the Props chart

Hide table

Overall Enquiry Volume for April 2009
Rank	Country	Share	Change	Comment
1	USA	9.3	Non-mover	1 month in top spot
2	Portugal	9.06	Up 5
3	Italy	6.81	Non-mover
4	UAE	5.96	Up 2
5	Turkey	5.02	Non-mover
6	Spain	4.68	Down 4
7	France	4.38	Down 3
8	Egypt	3.95	Up 2
9	Thailand	2.74	Up 5	New to top 10!
10	Greece	2.37	Up 5	New to top 10!
11	Dominican Republic	2.34	Up 7
12	Bulgaria	2.22	Non-mover
13	Canada	1.67	Up 9
14	Cyprus	1.64	Down 3
15	Brazil	1.52	Down 6
16	India	1.12	Up 5
17	Germany	0.91	Down 4
18	Barbados	0.91	Up 8
19	Morocco	0.91	Up 1
20	New Zealand	0.88	Down 3
21	Bahamas	0.73	Up 9
22	Philippines	0.67	Up 16
23	SOS Property	0.58		Highest New Entry
24	Australia	0.55	Down 8
25	Montenegro	0.43	Down 1
26	Croatia	0.36	Up 8
27	St Lucia	0.36	Up 18	Highest climber
28	Sweden	0.36	Down 5
29	South Africa	0.33	Up 10
30	St Kitts and Nevis	0.3		New Entry
31	Costa Rica	0.27	Up 11
32	Cape Verde	0.27	Up 1
33	Poland	0.27	Down 1
34	Romania	0.27	Down 3
35	Malaysia	0.24	Down 10
36	Panama	0.24	Down 7
37		0.24		Highest New Entry
38	Albania	0.24		New Entry
39	Slovakia	0.24	Up 1
40	Sri Lanka	0.24	Down 32	Biggest faller

Print Show Full Table

Picture by pointnshoot

Bookmark This Page

Tag, share or bookmark this page:

Recent Related Stories

Subscribe to Newsletters