Top Stories
BuyProperty4Less helps investors do just that
Author: Ivan Radford
BuyProperty4Less is a new investment portal that helps buyers to do just that. The newly launched specialist site, part of the Lead Galaxy network of real estate portals, is tailored to meet growing demand for investments in bricks and mortar at a time of economic uncertainty.
International buyers returning to Italy
Author: Ivan Radford
International buyers are returning to Italian property as prices continue to fall. Sales slumped last year across the country by 26 per cent, but overseas investors are starting to take advantage of economic concerns and questions about taxes, spending €2.1bn on second homes last year.
Buying beats renting in two-thirds of US
Author: Ivan Radford
Buying US property beats renting in almost two-thirds of the country, according to new research. A survey from Zillow shows that in 64 per cent of the US, buying a home is less expensive than renting, with Miami and Detroit ranked as the most affordable.
Jimmy Savile’s home on sale for £100k
Author: Ivan Radford
Jimmy Savile’s home is being put up for sale this month. The Highland home, located in Glencoe, will go under the hammer in Glasgow with a price tag of £100,000. Auctioneers say there has been "a lot of interest" in the property.
Investment Watch: Oh we do like to build beside the seaside
Author: Ivan Radford
Buyers do like to build beside the seaside, according to TheMoveChannel.com’s Investment Watch. The property portal's report shows that plots of land were particularly popular in April 2013, with a building plot in the Cayman Islands attracting the highest number of enquiries on the site.
Spain to restrict holiday rentals?
Author: Ivan Radford
They generate an estimated 1.45 billion euros in direct income, but Spanish holiday home rentals could be restricted by a new Spanish law. The proposed legislation will restrict private owners’ rights to let out homes in an attempt to appease the hotel sector.
Bulgaria property sales surge at start of year
Author: Ivan Radford
Bulgaria property sales surged at the start of the year, according to new figures. 44,174 transactions were completed in the first quarter of 2013 compared to 35,821 in the same period last year, the National Statistics Agency announced - a leap of 23 per cent.
Spanish residency law drives up Chinese demand
Author: Ivan Radford
Chinese demand for property in Barcelona and Ibiza is on the up, according to Lucas Fox. The increase in attention follows a proposed change in Spanish residency law, which would offer residency to non-EU citizens who buy a property worth at least €500,000.
78,000 people sign up to move to Mars
Author: Ivan Radford
Would you like to live on Mars? You are not alone. 78,000 people have applied to move to the Red Planet. Mars One, a non-profit organisation whose goal is to establish a human settlement on Mars, aims to complete the world’s most ambitious house move in 10 years. The only catch? They will never come back.
At a Glance: Barbados buyers head straight to Saint James
Author: Ivan Radford
Barbados property buyers head straight to Saint James, TheMoveChannel.com’s At a Glance report reveals. The infographic, which depicts activity on the property portal in the last 12 months, shows that Saint James is the most popular region on the island, accounting for 38 per cent of all enquiries.
Foreigners account for over half of prime London property sales
Author: Ivan Radford
Overseas buyers account for over half of London prime property sales, according to new figures. London’s real estate continues to attract interest from around the world thanks to its status as an economic safe haven. Now, foreign buyers have overtaken Brits to account for 52pc of all house sales worth over £2 million.
Dubai: The world’s second hottest housing market
Author: Ivan Radford
Dubai has been ranked the world’s second hottest housing market. The emirate’s real estate bounced back from financial crash last year, with prices shooting up by 19 per cent, the second highest rise in the world, according to Knight Frank.
Luxury NY apartments sold for $10
Author: Ivan Radford
Luxury New York apartments are not something just anyone can afford. Unless, that is, you are talking about Jupiter 21. The shiny new block of flats on Second Avenue was announced two years ago and has just been completed. The price for a unit? $10.
Top of the Props: Thailand climbs into world top three
Author: Ivan Radford
Thailand became the third most popular property destination in the world last month, according to TheMoveChannel.com’s Top of the Props. The country accounted for 6.78 per cent of all enquiries on the real estate portal in April 2013, a share that took Thailand into the top three countries, its highest ever ranking.
Top of the Props: Thailand climbs into world top three
Author: Ivan Radford
Thailand became the third most popular property destination in the world last month, according to TheMoveChannel.com’s Top of the Props. The country accounted for 6.78 per cent of all enquiries on the real estate portal in April 2013, a share that took Thailand into the top three countries, its highest ever ranking.
Italy to abolish property tax?
Author: Ivan Radford
Italy’s new Prime Minister Enrico Letta has promised to scrap the June instalment of the country’s property tax. The IMU housing tax was introduced by former PM Mario Monti, an unpopular attempt to tackle the country’s debt and meet EU targets. But the elections have given hope to homeowners as the PM promises to end austerity and encourage growth.
Greece offers residency to foreign property buyers
Author: Ivan Radford
Greece has announced that it will offer residency to foreign property investors as of May this year. The legislation, which was passed last week, will give five year residency to any non-EU buyers who purchase property worth over €250,000.
Jakarta ranked world’s top prime property hotspot
Author: Ivan Radford
Jakarta is the top prime property hotspot in the world, according to Knight Frank’s latest research. The Prime Global Cities Index saw the Indonesian Capital’s prime real estate prices rocket by 38.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2013, closely followed by Florida’s Miami, where prices surged by 21.1 per cent.
Foreign Spanish property sales up 17pc
Author: Ivan Radford
Foreign buyers are “vital” to the Spanish property market, according to experts. Spain’s housing market, still struggling to recover from financial crisis, is relying upon overseas buyers to step up their activity. And buyers are doing just that, with international investment growing by 17 per cent last year.
Investment Watch: Demand for renewable energy rises to record high
Author: Ivan Radford
Interest in renewable energy investment has risen to record highs, according to TheMoveChannel.com’s Investment Watch. A brochure on the growing energy certificate sector attracted the highest number of enquiries on the portal last month, only the second time an alternative investment has outperformed the site’s real estate listings.