Expats now mainly buying UK property for investment

Pure investment opportunity has become the main reason why expatriates now purchase property in the UK, according to a new survey.

Previous surveys by Find UK Property have shown that holiday use was as an important reason as investment for buying properties in Britain. But now pure investment rules the roost according to the latest survey, conducted last month.

“UK nationals living and working overseas form a large proportion of overseas residents buying property in the UK,” said the company.

“Whilst many buy for their own use, an increasing number of expats have also been buying for pure investment and this trend seems to be increasing. Added to this are residents of other countries who may not be UK nationals, but still see the UK as a 'safe haven' when considering long-term investment in property.

“For them, the UK is attractive as UK property buying process and selling laws are well regulated and long-term title ownership is clear cut.”

In a similar survey five years ago, 31 per cent of Find Uk Property clients were looking for property for investment reason. By this year, that figure had increased to 42 per cent. Only 20 per cent said they were looking for holiday use, while 24 per cent were considering buying purely for personal residential use.

Andy Noble, senior consultant at Find UK Property, said that expats working in the Middle and Far East accounted for a large proportion of the increase in investment opportunities.

He said that UK expats were realising that property investment at home offered them better returns than other forms of investment and did not carry some of the risks associated with buying properties abroad.

Mr Noble added that, while many overseas buyers were still attracted to London, expats were increasingly looking to the regions as prices in SE London and, in particular, the capital continued to soar.

He said the trend amongst UK expats was to opt for lower cost properties away from London, which could have rental yields of about eight per cent, double the rate of properties in the SE.

The survey said that many clients were looking at property investments for the long term, intending to keep them to generate pension income. Expats also qualify for the £10,000 UK personal allowance, which means that for many the rental income is effectively tax free.

Source: http://www.relocatemagazine.com/