Which country should I buy in?

[Premier French Property]

Here's an article I came across today that people following this thread may find interesting.

All the best

[intercepta]

I've just come across this forum and am impressed by the activity. Looking at the original request however, I am amazed at the amount of 'advice' that has been offered with so little being known about the originator. What is your attitude to risk? How much are you looking to invest? How long for? Do you want personal useage? Are you looking for a rental yield? Without these basics being answered the comments offered are interesting but of little value.

[gsinker]

Panama is still a growing market with 25% appreciation in the last 2 years. Rental yields remain strong around 12%

Strong economy, Stable government, and the currency is tied to the US dollar at 1 - 1 so your money goes much further.

PM me for details on our Caribbean Beach Front Resort called Bala Beach.

Great low pre construction prices

[romanianoffer]

I would say, look at Romania, it has tremendous potential. I have been on this market for some time now and can explain the reasons why it makes a perfect investment.

[neustria]

Does anybody here have any information and or experience on real estate investment in Serbia or Bosnia? There is almost no information available, certainly because most everybody still considers these no go regions after the recent ethnic violence. I would be interested in hearing from anybody with information on these countries.

Neustria

[Investy]

Neustria

Serbia featured on Channel 4s a Place In The Sun recently. They described the capital as having lots of culture, but as you say the risk is generally considered high.

I used to try and find locations like this, but have come to the realisation there is little point taking excessive risk when there are much less risky opportunities that still have lots of potential upside. Among my overseas investments I consider the mega Government backed Plan Azure developments on the Med Moroccan coast to be the best. Saidia is the spearhead of the Govt Plan Azure scheme. Forget any previous conceptions you have on Morocco, these developments really are a must for the thinking investor.

[neustria]

Reply to Intercepta (above)
Forums generally do not provide tailor made advice, but rather enable people with different experiences to share the information that they have gathered with others. When something sounds like it could correspond to what one is looking for, then the first step would certainly be to make a trip to the region that the person are interested in, and then make an investment decision taking into account all of of the parameters of his specific profile.

To Investy (just above)
Thank you for your reply and the news that Channel Four had actually done a feature on the region.
I think that for most of us a region has to "feel right" to begin with and, as for me, I don't think that I would feel like taking on a place like Morocco (I can see you raising your eyes upward and thinking 'yes, but then he considers war-torn Serbia/Bosnia??')
I visited Morocco quite a few years ago and found it a very interesting place and the people generally friendly.
When I accept a high level of risk I generally moderate my investment appetite so that, if all goes wrong, at least I am not out of a retirement...

Neustria

[iom_keith]

My thoughts for what they are worth...

Four years ago I was in a position to invest. I gave consideration to Cape Verdi but felt I would have to flip the property as it would soon be saturated and I believed that air travel would eventually become very expensive (and I still do). At that point, who will go to Cape Verdi? If I had bought there, I would have been out again by now.

I would have loved to invest in Vietnam and if I had enough spare cash, I still would. Difficult for foriegn investors but possible and getting easier. Stable, all be it, non-elected government. No religious violence now or likely. Beautiful, friendly, developing fast, it will soon be a tourist destination of choice IMO. One more bomb in Bali and the Australians will be flooding there. I chose against it because of the difficulties, especially from the UK, due to distances to get there regularly enough to keep an eye on the place. If you've not visited Vietnam, it's well worth it.

I actually bought in Cabarete, Dominican Republic. I've seen that Dom Rep has been mentioned in this thread already. Cabarete itself is a boom town and I'm delighted with my purchase as I am looking for a seven to ten year minimum ownership (I'm too lazy to keep selling & buying!) Dom Rep tourism was begining to boom about five years ago and more tourists were going outside of the All Inclusives. The USA had discovered the charmes right on their doorstep and while Canadians & Europeans are still the majority visitors, those tourists from the US will probably pass the Europeans this year. This ties in nicely with my rising fuel concern. In a couple of years time, I might not be visiting Cabarete from Europe but even more Americans will be (I hope!) Cabarete itself is still booming, with lots of building still going on (and selling). I think there is still worthwhile investment to be had there but the big profit would have been a few years ago. Sosua is a town that is much cheaper than Cabarete still. It's the next town along the coast from Cabarete and has a lot of prostitutes and a reputation for attracting "that type" of tourist, which is why I dismissed it when I chose to buy in Dom Rep. That said, I think that if the town gets its act together (and there are signs that it might) it has the potential to move upmarket, in part because Cabarete will be full. The East coast is a different market all together.

I have a property in the UK which I kept being tempted to sell, and then buy in Sosua, especially as the property prices in the UK were obviously going to dip, but I have a good, long term tenant in the property and I decided against putting all (both!) my eggs in one basket. If I had decided to sell, Sosua would have probably been where I would have purchased.

That's my opinion... worth the paper its written on!

[fresh1]

I am surprised that Albania has been so quickly dismissed, especially considering the massive changes occuring there.

They have been invited to join NATO next year (2009), they are on track for joining the EU by 2014-15, the property prices are still low, and already banks are willing to lend to foreign purchasers. The kind of mortgage products now available in Albania, were not available in Bulgaria or Romania until after they joined the EU.

The infrastructure is improving - soon the country will have all new highways, and the modern capital city (Tirana) airport which opened in 2007, is now about to double in size. The country is now starting to feel the effects of the improvements as tourism to Albania in 2008 was up 23%.

Also a report by the United Nations and Eurostat detailing their forecasts for population movement in Southern Europe over the next few decades, indicated the following population changes:
- Bulgaria: -35%
- Ukraine: -28%
- Russia: -23%
- Bosnia: -20%
- Macedonia: -15%
- Croatia: -14%
- Portugal: -13%

And the only country in southern Europe with a rising population is ALBANIA: +14%.

With new build prices in the capital Tirana currently from EUR24,000 and on the coast (Saranda, Durres, Vlora) from approx EUR29,000, investors can no longer ignore the opportunity that Albania has for property investment.

[jungfraujoch]

I think Costa Rica

Costa Rican law recognizes that owning real estate and properties is an absolute right, and does not treat local and foreign citizens differently..


Costa Rica is a country that is situated between Panama and Nicaragua.
It is bordered not only by the Pacific Ocean but the Caribbean Sea as
well. This country is divided by mountains and volcanoes. About 19,000
square miles make up this country and over 800 miles of this country
is coastline. It has some of the most breathtaking landscapes and
beaches that you will ever see.Many of the Costa Rican people are of European as well as mestizo
decent. Most of the people of this area were powerless against such
diseases as measles and the common cold which were carried by the
Spaniards to this small country. The Costa Rican people have a great
sense of pride because they have formed a unique nation to the entire
world. Their history has been built upon tolerance and prosperity
because they took to heart the positive lessons that they brought over
from the old world.

look "costaricaeye " keyword in google search