Spain and the Canary Isles still the Brits favourite place to buy a home

February 7, 2011 – 12:14 pm

Spain is still tops for Britons buying homes abroad

Spain is the perennial favourite for Britons looking to buy a home abroad, confirms the latest survey by Channel 4’s A Place in the Sun.

The ranking for 2011 goes as follows (2010 in brackets):

1. Spain (1)
2. France (3)                    
3. Portugal (4)
4. Italy (6)
5. Florida (2)
6. Turkey (5)
7. Greece (8)
8. Cyprus (7)
9. Malta (new entry)
10. Egypt (new entry)

Here is what they had to say about Spain, Tenerife and the Canary Islands:

Once again, Spain remains the most popular destination for Brits to buy abroad and therefore tops our chart of the best places to buy abroad in 2011. After all, it has all the right ingredients – excellent access from the UK, sun, sea, culture and infrastructure. With repossessed properties and distressed sales hitting the market, the home of the Costas, Balearic and Canary Islands still has some great deals for the diligent buyer. Huge discounts on holiday homes mean there’s a multitude of destinations and property options on offer.

As we have been saying for a while now, this really is a great time to buy in Tenerife. In fact it is a great time to buy throughout Spain and its islands.  Check out the latest deals with your estate agent, particularly the discounts available  on prime property in Tenerife.

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

Rough week for euro market after interest rate and bond concerns

January 18, 2011 – 11:55 am

A rough week for Euro market rates

A  degree of uncertainty over the results of the highly anticipated Portuguese bond auction saw the Euro trade cautiously in the early part of this week, Portugal has remained under the spotlight  recently as fear of contagion gripped markets over possible escalation in Europe’s ongoing sovereign debt problems.

The euro saw some marginal appreciation across most majors after speculation hit the market that the Swiss government may take action to temper the strength of the Swiss Franc versus the Euro and maintained the higher end of ranges with further speculation that the European Central Bank would be aggressively participating in the coming sovereign auctions. Portugal’s bond auction produced a successful result with the full €1.25bln being sold and the 10-yr yield average coming in lower than had been anticipated and thus meant a sustainable cost level for Portugal. Bond auctions from Spain and Italy followed that of Portugal just ahead of the European Central Bank rate decision. Both countries had successful auctions and like their Portuguese counterparts Spain’s bond yields also average lower and pushed the single currency higher.

The ECB kept interest rates unchanged at 1.0%, as expected, but surprised markets by changing the tone of its monetary policy stance to being a lot more hawkish. In his press conference ECB President Trichet warned of inflationary risk within the euro zone and stated the central bank was prepared to raise interest rates to ensure price stability. The governing Council saw evidence of short-term upward pressure to overall inflation and while medium-term pressure remained anchored risk to the upside had increased.

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

Spain’s bond auction hoping to follow Portugal’s success

January 14, 2011 – 9:56 am

Spain’s first bond auction of 2011 may be buoyed by Portugal’s success selling debt yesterday and European efforts to bolster the region’s sovereign-bailout fund.

Spain plans to sell as much as 3 billion euros ($3.9 billion) of five-year bonds in Madrid. Securities of similar maturity yielded 4.765 percent on the secondary market, up from 3.576 percent at a Nov. 4 auction. Italy, the euro region’s second-most indebted nation, aims to issue as much as 6 billion euros of debt due in 2015 and 2026.

The yield on Spain’s benchmark 10-year bond reached the highest in more than a decade this week on concern Europe’s debt crisis was spreading and Portugal would follow Greece and Ireland in seeking European Union aid. Portugal’s 10-year borrowing costs fell at a sale of 1.25 billion euros of bonds yesterday, as European leaders moved to cobble together a package of new measures to stop the contagion.

By Angela | Posted in Economy, General, Inspirational, Property, Tenerife, Things to Do | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

A good result for sterling in the property market

February 21, 2010 – 12:08 pm

The value of overseas properties owned by Brits actually rose by more than £2.6bn, according to research. In many countries, the devaluation of sterling against the local currency was greater than the drop in property prices.

Sterling exchange rate means a profit for British property sellers in Tenerife and Spain

Sterling exchange rate means a profit for British property sellers in Tenerife and Spain

Property prices fell across much of the world last year, but looking at property in France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and the US. In France, for example, where prices declined by an average of 6.63 per cent in 2009, the Euro gained 13.22 per cent against the pound, giving an estimated 98,000 British owners an average gain – in sterling terms – of £10,373 per property. In Spain the fall in prices was even greater, but British owners are still looking at a profit in sterling terms.

There has been a lot of volatility in the currency markets recently and many expect this to continue. This is having a huge impact on the value of property owned by British people abroad and in many cases it is more influential than price changes in the local property markets.The research also highlights the need to get your timing right with overseas property purchases, and to consider forward foreign exchange contracts, as opposed to relying on spot prices

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

Thousands flock to Tenerife on cruise ships

January 31, 2010 – 2:18 pm
Thousands of tourists will be boosting Tenerife's economy again soon.

Thousands of tourists will be boosting Tenerife's economy again soon when the cruise ships start to visit once more.

The cruise ships will be bringing much needed revenue to Tenerife in the next few weeks, consisting mostly of  tourists from Britain,France, Germany and Italy. On February 3rd the MSC Fantasy arrives to kick off the influx arriving in Santa Cruz.

With unemployment rising on the island, this will be a welcome boost for the island’s economy.

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