Sterling high good news for Brits buying property in Tenerife and eurozone.

January 27, 2012 – 10:55 am

Sterling high against the Euro a boost for property buyers in Tenerife and Spain

There was good news for Brits seeking to buy property in the eurozone as sterling reached a 15-month high against the euro currency. The euro’s value depreciated against the UK pound on the back of fresh concerns regarding the the health of the eurozone’s banking system.

Sterling increased by 0.73% to €1.208 on Wednesday  its highest level since September 2010. The euro also fell 0.95% against the dollar to $1.293. Despite concerns about the fragile state of the UK economy, it is generally considered to be doing better than the Eurozone, which is struggling with a major debt crisis.

Geoffrey Yu, currency strategist at UBS, told Reuters: “Maybe the UK is approaching a consensus (for a recession) but it’s not there yet. And there’s no break-up risk, so people are more willing to allocate funding from a passive perspective at the start of the year.”

However, despite the recent recovery in the strength of the pound versus the euro, some currency experts do not expect sterling’s value to increase much further in the short- to medium-term.

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Survey finds Spain is where British expats are happiest

January 24, 2012 – 10:25 pm

Brits happiest in Tenerife and Spain says survey

British expats are happiest in Spain, followed by Canada and Germany, according to new research which also examined their cost of living and financial well being.

The survey by Lloyds TSB International also found that overall British expats are far happier in their adopted countries than in the UK.

Overall, 68% of those asked said that they felt happier where they were than in the UK, although for certain countries this figure was much higher. Spain ranked number one for expat happiness, with over three quarters, 75.9%, of Brits living there saying they are happier than back at home. Germany also rates highly on the happiness scale with 71% saying they are happier than in the UK.

Source: ExpatForum.com

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Euribor rate falls for fourth month in a row

January 4, 2012 – 11:40 am

Euribor down again which means mortgage repayments up in Spain and Tenerife

Euribor, (12 months), the interest rate typically used to calculate mortgage repayments in Spain, fell for the fourth month in a row to end the year at 2.01, a percentage fall of 1.7pc on the previous month. Compared to the 12 months ago, however, Euribor rose by 33.4pc, meaning higher mortgage repayments for all those on annually resetting mortgages.

The European Central Bank (ECB) cut base rates from 1.25 to 1.00 during December, the second cut in 2 months since the Italian Mario Draghi took over as the new Governor. Markets were expecting the cut, and judging by Euribor’s recent trend do not expect rates to increase any time soon. As you can see from the following chart, Eurozone base rates are still significantly higher then the US, the UK, and Japan.

New mortgage lending continued to shrink in October, with new mortgage approvals down 43pc to 23,193 (and down 46.5pc by value), according to figures from the INE. It’s clear the credit crunch is well and truly back in Spain.

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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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Buying opportunities in Tenerife and Spain

December 13, 2011 – 12:10 pm

Property bargains abound in Tenerife and Spain

The recent credit crisis has opened up some superb buying opportunities for buyers seeking a second home in Spain. While prices have fallen typically 25% from their peak.

For example, the Polaris World resorts were made famous by endless TV adverts featuring Jack Nicklaus before the recession hit, now these superb, complete golf resorts have a small proportion of unsold properties which the banks are keen to sell.

Buyers are advised to move quickly as much of the stock made available by the banks has sold in the last twelve months. Prime position property is becoming more difficult to find for buyers and the future of such cut price deals and mortgages remains uncertain with the government bailout of CAM about to result in a sale to a stronger banking group in Spain.

Villa Cashback MD Paul Williams remains cautious about continuing half price deals. “At this stage we don’t know what form a future CAM bank will take and what the pricing strategy of the new banking group will be. What we do know is that a weak CAM bank has so far undercut the stronger banks in pricing their property. Now it’s about to be bought by a stronger institution there’s no guarantee of the property giveaway continuing.”

Brand new apartments are available on resorts such as Hacienda Riquelme where front line golf apartments are available at less than half their original prices. Mortgages of up to 90% are available for overseas buyers. The resort has proved extremely popular with UK and northern European buyers this year.

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Spanish rental property still tops

December 9, 2011 – 10:36 am

Spanish rental property still tops with the British

Overseas property buyers can get an idea of where they are likely to find a good rental market for their holiday home from a new survey that reveals Spain has been the top destination of 2011.

The quarter three Marketplace Report from holiday rentals specialists HomeAway also shows that there has been an increase in the rentals market in Thailand and Dubai.

More British people than ever opted for Spain as their top summer destination. In terms of the number of booking enquiries for breaks in the third quarter of the year Malaga Province and Majorca claimed first and second place, followed by Ibiza in sixth place.

There was also a clear preference towards short haul destinations with nine out of the top ten destinations for summer 2011 holidays being either in the UK, or within a three hour flight distance.

Source: PropertyCommunity.com

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Attention furnished holiday let owners,only two months left to apply for a tax rebate.

December 6, 2011 – 9:34 pm

Owners of furnished holiday lets in the UK and EU may be entitled to a tax rebate for the last four years but the window to make the claim to HMRC closes on 31 January 2012.

The rebate is achieved by claiming maximum expenses and allowances against your rental income from the holiday let. This will either then reduce taxable profit, or result in an overall loss for the tax year. That loss can then be offset against your other personal income from employment, dividends etc.

Most investors and their accountants would not be aware of the rules on the relevant allowances and loss offsets to take advantage of this window of opportunity. The key questions to ask yourself are:

  • Is your furnished holiday let within the EU?
  • Was the property rented out for 70 days or more in any tax year, and for no more than 31 days to any one party?
  • Are you a UK tax payer?

If you can answer “yes” to the above questions then you should get in touch with an accountant to see what  tax rebate you can get.

 

Two weeks remain for furnished to let property owners in Spain and Tenerife to claim a tax rebate

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Spain heading for top spot as a tourist destination once more

November 3, 2011 – 3:16 pm

Spain top destination once more with Brits

Spain is heading for a return to tourism domination as the 2011 visitor figures soar towards a record 57 million, boosted by higher numbers of independent travellers staying in rented accommodation along their favourite Costas.

80% of tourists now book their own flights and accommodation. Average stay in owned apartments or rented villas is now 15 days , twice that of hotels, who have had record occupancy in 2011. Average stay rose two percent and more came people from the UK than any other country.

There are now 370,000 Brits living full-time officially in Spain, drawn by the California climate, cheap food and drink, fiesta lifestyle and above average life expectancy. 1,000s more are planning to join them after Britain came bottom in a survey to find the best place to live. The summer city riots have influenced 1,00s more to quit the UK.

A Lloyds TSB survey found 67% of Brits living in Spain “had no plans to return to Britain” and 74% claimed quality of life was better. The survey found 87% of Brits felt safer in Spain “which is a better place to bring up kids”.

Source: PropertyinSpain.net

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Low cost airlines transport more than half of Spain’s air traffic.

October 28, 2011 – 6:48 pm

Cheap flights to Spain and Tenerife

Low cost airlines carried 28.9 million passengers during the first nine months of the year, which is a 14.1% increase over the same period in 2010, compared to regular airlines, who carried 21.4 million passengers, an 8.3% rise, according to data released this week by the Institute of Tourism Studies for the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade, reported Cinco Dias.

Thus, the low cost airlines accounted for more than half of Spain’s air traffic up to September, at 57.5%, compared to the traditional airlines who commanded 42.5% of the travellers.

By market, the UK and Germany lead the figures for budget airline travel, with 36.8% and 20% respectively of passengers who chose this path, which is up 10.2% for the British market (at 10.6 million passengers) and 6.6% for German travellers (with 5.7 million passengers).

In September, low cost airlines transported 3.8 million passengers, a 12.4% increase, while the traditional airlines carried 2.7 million passengers, representing an increase of 8.4%. Of the 6.5 million international passengers who arrived in Spain by air last month 58.8% did so using ‘low cost’ companies.

Source: Kyero.com

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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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