Brits getting ready to buy in Tenerife?

April 30, 2012 – 8:38 am

Brits sending money to Tenerife and Spain in order to buy property

Brits are getting ready to buy by transferring money abroad, according to Knight Frank. An increasing number of UK investors are sending money overseas to purchase a second home, the agency’s head of residential development James Price told OPP this week.

“The recession here in the UK is not really a factor,” he commented.
“People want to move at the higher end for tax reasons… this is a result more of the pull of both climate and culture, rather than any perceived ‘push’ from the UK.”

Price’s comments follows figures this week that show Brits are increasingly
looking abroad for holidays as the weather worsens in the UK. With prices
of property across Europe held down by the recession and the weakening
single currency, some may find themselves staying abroad for longer as they
seek out a place in the sun.

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Health, Holiday, Inspirational, Miscellaneous Articles, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do, Weather | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

More wealthy Brits expected to move overseas

April 20, 2012 – 10:03 am

Wealthy Brits moving to Spain and Tenerife?

The volume of wealthy Britons who move overseas is expected to rise in the next two years, according to a new Lloyds TSB International Wealth survey. The study shows that 19% of people with savings and investments worth more than £250,000 are considering moving abroad, up from 17% six months ago and 14% a year ago. The new figure suggests that over half a million people with that level of personal wealth may flee overseas by 2014 in search of a better, more affordable lifestyle. Many of those seeking to leave the UK say that they would reconsider if Briton lowered taxes, cut regulatory red tape for businesses and improved public services such as healthcare, education and the police. Any hike in in the number of Brits moving overseas would undoubtedly fuel greater demand for homes abroad, with Spain, France, Portugal, Australia, and the USA often high on the agenda. Nicholas Boys Smith, director at Lloyds TSB International Wealth, said the number of people expected to leave the UK includes a “large number of successful, affluent individuals who play an important role in powering the UK economy”. He said: “While the figures strongly suggest we won’t see a mass exodus, it is clear that a significant and growing minority see opportunity and a better quality of life overseas.”

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Tow in three second home owners are considering selling their property

March 19, 2012 – 12:12 pm

2 out of 3 second home owners consider selling their property

Two in three (65%) second homeowners are considering or would like to sell their property, according to a new survey from holiday rentals company HomeAway. It revealed that almost 60% also confirmed that their property had taken a nose-dive in value since they purchased it and 37% were feeling the squeeze, saying it was a bigger financial burden of late.

The vast majority bought their properties in the last six years, following the boom in UK house prices in 2007 which resulted in a huge rise in equity that owners quickly put to good use buying a second home in the UK or abroad.

More than 90% of respondents stated they had property in Europe, with France and Spain unsurprisingly the top two countries.

Source: PropertyTalkLive.co.uk

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Spain most popular for currency exchange

February 10, 2012 – 3:26 pm

Whilst Spain remains the most popular destination in terms of volume of currency transactions in 2011, interestingly, the UK takes second place with 18% of transactions according to the latest data compiled by FX specialist, Currency Index.

Almost a quarter of all FX transactions in 2011 (24.99%) were sent to Spain, unsurprising given the country’s appeal as a top holiday and second home destination.Robin Haynes, MD of award-winning Currency Index explains, “18.10% of FX transactions, nearly a fifth, last year were made back to the UK. This is most likely a result of people returning home from overseas or in a few cases sending currency to UK-based Euro/USD accounts for example, which can be overseas properties where a lawyer’s client account is in the UK for example. In addition, part of these transactions will be business clients repatriating income and also individuals earning money abroad. It really is a mixed bag but of note none the less.

“In Q4 2011, there was a 15% increase in people bringing money back to the UK probably due to the Euro crisis which sparked panic and saw people moving money back to locations seen as safe havens.”

Indeed, the Eurozone sovereign debt crisis has caused fear to spread but for those considering buying property abroad, the reduction of the value of the single currency means that now is in fact one of the cheapest times to buy a place in the sun.

Haynes comments, “There is a lot of confusion and scaremongering going on in the Euro at the moment but in spite of this, overseas property buyers should rest assured that the single currency devaluation will mean that they will currently be able get over 8% more for their money than if they were buying Euros in July last year.”

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British emigrants in Spain receiving sickness benefits

January 13, 2012 – 6:04 am

Some Spanish and Tenerife residents receiving over £90 a week in benefits from UK

At least 10,000 British emigrants are receiving sickness benefits of up to £94 a week while living abroad, according to figures published yesterday. The combined total could cost the taxpayer close to £50million a year.

Over the next three years, major changes are being introduced to incapacity benefit, including a tougher medical test for claimants and the re-testing of existing recipients. But officials have admitted that about 4,000 older recipients of the benefit living in Spain, Jamaica and elsewhere will be able to continue drawing the payment until they reach retirement age.

Source: Telegraph.co.uk

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Spain remains top retirement hotspot

December 21, 2011 – 4:19 pm

Spain and Tenerife remain top of the props

For those of you thinking of retiring abroad or relocating in 2012, Standard Life has released its latest retirement hotspots research which shows that Spain is the number one retirement destinations in the world as far as Brits are concerned. Spain is followed by Australia, USA, France and Ireland.

But while retiring abroad is a dream for many people, it does require careful planning and advice, according to John Lawson, head of pension policy at Standard Life.

He said: “Many people think living abroad is cheaper than living in the UK, but this isn’t always the case. Doing your homework in advance of moving, matching your retirement income and expenditure, and making the appropriate decisions around purchasing an annuity or using income drawdown are key considerations. Your retirement income could also be subject to exchange rates and currency fluctuations, as well as local tax laws.”

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More expats planning to stay abroad

October 27, 2011 – 2:24 pm

In February, Lloyds TBS International released a survey that suggested 67 per cent of expats had no plans to return to Britain – compared to just 56 per cent when the same survey was conducted six months before.

Now, research by the company has revealed that even more people (69 per cent) are planning to stay abroad permanently, with 15 per cent saying they have cancelled plans to return in just the past year.

A combination of improved financial prospects and the belief that quality of life is higher overseas seemed to be the main motivation behind expats’ decision to stay. Despite the financial hardship that many expats, particularly those in Europe, have suffered due to adverse currency fluctuations since the beginning of the economic crisis, 64 per cent said they were still financially better-off abroad, with only a quarter saying that the cost of living was higher.

Nearly three-quarters (74 per cent) per cent said their quality of life was higher, with 51 per cent agreeing that their new home was a better place to bring up children. Many expats also felt safer abroad, with just 13 per cent saying that their neighbourhoods in Britain had been less dangerous.

Source: Telegraph.co.uk

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More UK holiday makers uninsured when travelling overseas

October 10, 2011 – 8:54 am

Uninsured holiday makers to Tenerife expect the UK government to take care of the bills.

As many as 20% of UK holidaymakers are still going abroad without taking out travel insurance, a survey by travel organisation ABTA found.

More than one in four travellers mistakenly believes the UK Government will cover their bills if something goes wrong.

The poll of 2,018 consumers also found that only 44% bought travel insurance for trips in the UK.

Abta’s financial protection chief, John de Vial, said: “It is very worrying that so many people are putting their health and finances at risk by travelling abroad without insurance.” 

Source: Independent.co.uk

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Tax rules reforms by UK treasury

August 13, 2011 – 10:22 am

New UK treasury rules affect property owners in Tenerife.

New UK treasury reforms could see retirees who live and own property abroad able to spend up to a third of their time back home each year without paying any tax.

The new laws, to be implemented in April 2012 if they are passed, wll allow British retirees living abroad to be back in the UK for 119 days of the year before they are liable for any local taxes. This will come as positive news for many expats who live and own properties in European destinations such as France or Spain, but still spend a significant part of the year back in the UK seeing friends and family or for medical issues.

Under current regulations, expat retirees are only able to spend up to 90 days in the UK per year before they are deemed ‘resident’ and charged tax. Not only will this number of days be extended in the new laws, it will also allow those who have been home for under 90 days in the last 2 tax years able to retrospectively ‘claim back’ their extra days – in other words, they will be able to spend 182 days total in the UK next year before they are charged tax.

Chief executive of tax and investment planning firm Blevins Franks, David Franks, said the reforms would be a welcome relief for both British expats living abroad, and foreigners who own property in the UK and spend significant time there. “The new rules are a major advance in providing certainty for individuals who have homes in the UK and visit there frequently, so we hope they will be implemented”, he said. “They are still at the draft stage at the moment, but they have been welcomed by tax practitioners and so we do not expect any major changes.”

Hopefully, those expats in Tenerife will  be able to take advantage of the new rules when necessary.

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Shop around for your foreign currency when buying property abroad

August 11, 2011 – 5:29 pm

Take care when exchanging currency to purchase property in Tenerife and overseas

Independent analysis on the European property market found that average foreign property buyer spending £125,000 on their overseas home would receive €131,547 from a high street bank. However using a specialist foreign currency provider could result in an improved rate of €139,033 – a massive €7,486 difference equivalent to around £6,600, according to GSA.

The highest return on a £125,000 transfer was €139,650 offered by Currencies.co.uk, while the lowest was €131,062.50 offered by HSBC.

Just 10% of foreign currency transactions are made using a foreign currency provider, who can offer around 5.6% more than the High Street as they use commercial exchange rates to determine the value.

Savills International Research on second homes found that around 130,000 overseas properties were purchased by Britons between 2005 and 2009, potentially wasting millions as a result of poor exchange rates.

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