rumpola

Hi kcsunshine, Not too sure about Cote D'Azur or Majorca as an investment area, but in regards to your CGT question, the answer is, it depends if the country you are buying in has a double taxation treaty with the UK (assuming you are a UK citizen). There is a treaty between the UK and Spain, so if for example CGT is 20% in Spain and the UK, you would have to pay the 20% to the Spanish tax office no matter what, but as you have paid the 20% in Spain, you wont have to pay it in the UK on any gains from your foreign property. If the CGT in Spain is 15% and the UK is 20%, you will need to pay the full amount in Spain, and the extra 5% when you repatriate the funds back to the UK. Hope this helps.

If its feasible, is there any chance you can go to their offices in London to see if they are running a legit business? Alternatively, post up the name of the company and im sure posters on here will tell you about them, if they have used them before.

I have always found Moneycorp to be very helpful, quick and inexpensive. Tel no.(0) 20 7589 3000 HiFX are the same too. Tel no. (0)1753 859 159

That made me laugh I wouldnt be surprised if theres a tramp living in it too, but then again an existing tenant cant be a bad thing surely!! Seriously though, the market in Bristol has been over-priced for a long time imho. Dont get me wrong, there are still some areas that arent as expensive as others, which are worth keeping an eye on (Totterdown, Kingswood, St George, Fishponds). Unless you earn serious amounts of cash, the likes of Clifton, Harbourside, Westbury (the nice part), Leigh Woods etc will always be out of most normal income families reach. £500k for a 2 bed apartment is just obscene, no matter what part of Bristol its located in. I mean Clifton isnt exactly Knightsbridge now is it?

Brilliant post Lewis. Sums it all up nicely. Christine, there are some good deals to be had in some half tidy areas for your budget, just make sure you do your homework and ALWAYS get your own solicitor on the case. If you were to ask my own opinion on the areas you have mentioned, I would personally suggest Turkey as its a safer bet than, say, Northern Cyprus, but as Lewis rightly said, you may struggle with rentals, and this is crucial if you are hoping to off-set any mortgage payments against the rentals. Berlin should be a good money-maker over your 7 year time-scale, but considering you are looking to use it as a holiday home, I very much doubt Berlin would be your holiday destination of choice. If you can raise an extra 10K, it wouldnt be a bad idea to look at Saidia in Morocco. I dont know the exact costs, but im pretty sure you could pick up a Fadesa apartment in the AP5 area for approx £60-65K. This will be an ideal holiday home, and there's a fair bit of potential for rentals and capital growth, so (hopefully) in 7 years it should have risen in price considerably. you would have to furnish it though. Best of luck in whatever you choose anyway.

I personally know of 1 person that has successfully resold 2 properties on Saidia (AP6, 2 bed p/house and 3 bed duplex). I also know of another guy that has succesfully resold a Fadesa villa (V-2). They both made a decent profit on the sales, and they havent been completed yet, so to state that there isnt a re-sale market in Morocco is wrong. Admittedly, I cant imagine the re-sale market will pick up until the first hotels, golf course and commercial centre are ready and in use, but im feeling pretty certain there will be a market for resales when the site's up and running.

I think you will find that this is a project called Serrenia, and it does look very impressive. They have a website. Just click the link HERE

LOL, Well, with remarks like that, I still stand by my earlier point of you being bitter about something to do with this development. As for your comments about the King not setting foot on Saidia soil, well thats laughable. Do you truly think he is going to travel all the way to the site by yacht, and then not get off? Then why would he go there in the 1st place? To get a tan? As I and many others have stated before, this really is a unique development in an emerging market, and it ticks all the boxes for me in terms of investment and as a holiday home. I cant understand why you feel the need to constantly come onto the Saidia threads and knock every single person that thinks its a great investment opportunity. At the end of the day, its all a matter of opinion. It just so happens that your opinion is wrong this time

LOL, I see BigLog is still bitter about not getting the contract to supply building materials to the Saidia developers. Marsdei, I have recently spoken to a friend of mine that is purchasing one of Fadesa'a V-2 villas (literally an hour ago), and she been to the site again this week. She has told me the King IS on site (well, he's actually staying on a Yacht in the harbour), and I also know this from my contact on the site. BigLog is probably being pedantic, when he is saying he hasnt set foot on the site, as he is usually on the water. She also told me that when she was driving up to Saidia from Fes, it took her longer than usual as there were loads of armed guards at all the villages en-route, due to the Kings visit to the site, and his travels through the villages. She also spent some time visiting the area itself (Oujda, Nador, Saidia town etc), and met and spoke to a few locals, and they all were very happy about this site, as it will bring much needed jobs and money to what is a particularly poor area of the country. One fella she spoke to, is actually going to buy a tract of land, to develop (with the Governments blessing). In regards to the build finishes, she has stated while there ARE a few snagging issues, they are minor, and her and her husband are more than happy with the build quality of the villa. she just wishes there are more facilites ready/nearly ready on the site, as she is due to complete in the next month or so. BigLog, can you REALLY post here, that its all going to go down the swanny, due to build quality etc, when this site, along with the other 5 Azure sites are absolutely crucial to the entire countries future?? Who knows better you, or the head of the country and all his advisors?? As Dogbox has stated, do you think all the hotel chains (Barcelo, Sofitel, Intercontinental etc), havent done any due diligence on this site? Or is it possible that they are spending many millions on building their hotels, on the off-chance this may work?? I dont actually post too often on this site, but when you get bitter people like Big Log, talking out of his a r s e, it winds me up, as he clearly doesnt know the unique situation this resort is part of.

Tsunami's in the Straits of Mallaca??? I dont think so, considering it is little more than a thin strip of water that is enclosed by land to the east and west, which is the only directions there are any underwater fault lines, of which can cause a major Tsunami. It always makes me chuckle, when I hear of people being worried about a large Tsunami, since the last one hit Thailand/Sri Lanke etc. I mean, how many have there been in our lifetime, which have caused such devestation? I can think of only one. Its similar to people being worried about living in California, because of earthquakes, except theres FAR more chance of being caught in an earthquake in the US, than there is of being caught up in another major Tsunami. I must admit, I have reservations about owning a property that overhangs water, but as long as the developer has at least a 10 year build guarantee, there shouldnt be anything to worry about.

Sean, I can see your point, and obviously there is a modicum of a marketing ploy at hand here, but is it not feasible for these young multi-millionaires to have been advised by their own investment brokers to invest in this site? Also with the next World Cup being in South Africa, and England needing a training camp before the tournament starts, they may be purchasing here, as the England team may be planning on using this site, instead of the usual La Manga? Admittedly, I am probably totally wrong here, but it is a possibility surely?

I have been privvy to what Prem footballers are buying on that complex, and the footballers buying arent just the ones representing NEO, there are a lot more buying there than you realise. If it was a marketing ploy, surely they ALL would be the 'face' of the company not just Terry, Ferdinand and the Nevilles. There are at least another 5/6 players who have bought who are world famous too.

The best I can think of is Google Earth, but that is quite a while out of date. You can see the roads, the Marina, and AP4 and AP6, but thats about it.

Im not sure what is happening with the courses. Although the layout for the first one is mostly in place, they havent got any grass on it yet, but I know nothing about building golf courses, so maybe this is normal? The Barcelo was originally planned to open in July 07 according to their website around xmas time, but I have just checked and it now says coming 2008. Why, I have no idea

LOL, Funnily enough, someone mentioned to me on another forum, that all that seems to be missing is Kate Adie, as it looks like a war zone. Dogbox, at least Biglog/Taraca/Catara, cant complain that you havent seen the site anymore!! From what I gather, the AP apartments are at the lower end of the Saidia property scale, especially AP2, as there seems to be loads of apartments going in there. I thought the Barcelo Hotel is looking good, and obviously the marina is coming along nicely, but I thought the commercial centre would be farther along than it is. Oh well, good things come to those who wait

Hi All, I have been given this link by my guy at Superior, to a video of their last site visit (4 weeks ago) to Saidia, that has been posted on a website. It shows Magnum, V-1 villas, AP1, Oasis site, AP6, AP4, AP5, V2, the Barcelo Hotel, the Marina and the commercial centre. If anyone wants to watch it, just click the link below. Saidia Video

Have you tried holidaylettings.co.uk ? For £99 they will advertise your property, help you set up your ad, and anything else you need for it. Mainly used for letting your property, but they may have a section for selling your property. They are quite successful, and have around 10,000 clients so far.

Hi all, From what I have been led to beleive, the capital growth is around 15% per annum in the Port Dickson area, as it is very popular for the Asian market. Dogbox, I personally would choose to believe your Malaysian friend as he is on the ground there, but is he conversant in the Malaysian property martket would be my only concern there. With the (apparent) occupancy levels so high, I think there will be plenty of Asian people wanting to own one themselves. How you actually get to know who wants to purchase may be another matter though, so the exit strategy is a small comcern also. The way I see this, is it is a gamble, but I seem to think all you are gambling on is whether there's going to be a decent capital growth in the area. Admittedly gaining 104% of the property value over 13 years, isnt the greatest thing ever, but if the values rise, then it could be a very good thing indeed. They shouldnt be worthless after 10 years, as I would have thought there would be build guarantees in place for these sort of things. Especially considering you can get 13 years rental income with additional years being offered on top of that (not sure how many though). Im still giving this one some thought though.

I have recently found out about a development in Malaysia, in which the developer is offering up to 8% rental income for up to 13 years, with the option of another 10 years after. They are water chalets that basically overhang the Mallaca Straits (Tsunami's wont be a problem). I have been told its not the place European tourists would want to stay, but the Koreans, Japanese, Chinese and the Malaysians love it. The chalets are to be let under the umbrella of the Legends Hotel Group, that are highly prominent in South-East Asia, and they have a occupation rate of 85%+. They are 2 bed (1 bedroom with 2 beds in??), have a swimming pool that sits half inside, half outside the property (with larger properties having an outdoor infinity pool), an indoor/outdoor shower and a garden. They also come fully furnished to a high standard (I have seen interior pictures, and admittedly they DO look good) Prices start at about £80k going up to £140k for a large end chalet overlooking the Straits. You can also get upto a 70% draw-down mortgage on the property. All due diligence has been done, and build licences etc are available on request. Also has a sliding scale of CGT, after 5 years it is 0%. Im seriously thinking about taking a punt on this. What do other people think?