Top 5 Overseas Properties

Our blog on the top five articles from the site proved a hugely successful one so we've decided to continue the theme, outlining the five most popular overseas properties on the site over the past month.

The most popular property over the past month has been IP Spain's Acacias Resort in Lanzarote, Ireland's favourite Canarian island. Number two on the list has been removed, it is no longer for sale. The third most popular property on the site is Thurlesman, PJ Broderick's, Peroj apartments in Istria, Croatia. In fourth position comes HomeSwedHome's Manor Home in Ornskoldvik, Sweden for just €79k. In fifth place, and the first placed of our 'For Sale By Owner' properties is a wonderful property in Garajau, Portugal, which featured in our last newsletter. The picture accompanying our blog is a pic of this particular property. Nice, eh?

The eagle eyed among you will notice that most of the top five most popular properties are featured Premium Properties (which means that they rotoate on the homepage, this brings much more traffic than being listed as a standard property). Those that are not have featured in our monthly newsletter, another great way to promote your property. 

If you are an overseas property agent, check out listing your property as a Premium Property, you can be guaranteed it will maximise your exposure on Ireland's favourite Overseas Property Portal. If you would like to have your property featured on our monthly newsletter please contact Tara O'Toole on 00353 (0)86 604 49278 or email tara@OverseasCafe.com.

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For a selection of property from around the world click here. 

For a listing of agents selling overseas property click here.

For independent articles on overseas property click here.

For advice on purchasing property overseas click here.

For news on the world of overseas property click here.

For new releases and product updates from agents around the world click here.

For a list of upcoming overseas property exhibitions around the country click here. 

OverseasCafe.com

OverseasCafe.com in the News

OK, so this isn't the most timely news in the world, but it slipped under the radar somehow and it would be remiss of us not to mention it so now is as good a time as any.

Back in February the website got a very honourable mention in the Irish Independent, in a piece written by none other than our 'boss' Eilís FitzGerald.

The piece is based on the, now legendary, statistics published by the website each month. In the piece Eilís gives some good advice.

"There is no doubt that our interest in property abroad is as strong as ever, so the key to success is research, research, research. Property markets abroad tend to be strongly influenced by foreign investment in the region, and this is unlikely to happen in an unstable political environment. A politically stable country with a growing economy will attract foreign investment and tourism, which leads to higher capital appreciation and greater rental demand."

You'll find the full text of the article here.

In case you're not all that aware of what the site is about you'll find a few links to pertinent areas of it below.
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For a selection of property from around the world click here.

For a listing of agents selling overseas property click here.

For independent articles on overseas property click here.

For advice on purchasing property overseas click here.

For news on the world of overseas property click here.

For new releases and product updates from agents around the world click here.

For a list of upcoming overseas property exhibitions around the country click here.

www.OverseasCafe.com

Who's Been Looking Where - May '08

For those of you with an eye for statistics you'll no doubt be interested to see what areas are proving most popular with Irish web surfers.

May results are out and can be found on the site here. There is also a listing of percentages from January to May which gives a more accurate estimate of interest for the year-to-date. Monthly figures can be affected by new, in the news, hot-destinations, although negative sentiment has been more obvious in the market this year which has brought the old reliables of the UK and US to the fore.

In a more positive vein, however, there were a total of 94,300 searches conducted over the past month which is an increase of over 20,000 on April figures. April would traditionally be considered a stronger period than May for overseas property interest so this may be an indication of a turning tide for agents and developers overseas. To date this year the industry has been having a terrible time so any good news will be gratefully accepted.
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Property in the UK - click here
Property in the US - click here
Property in Spain - click here
Property in France - click here
Property in Portugal - click here
Property in Italy - click here
Property in Lanzarote - click here
Property in Tenerife - click here
Property in Turkey - click here
Property in Bulgaria - click here

www.OverseasCafe.com

Kevin O'Kane - Turkish Scam Update

For those of you who have been following the story of Bellaghy native, Kevin O'Kane's, story in Turkey you may be interested in the latest update, you'll find it here.

O'Kane, along with his Turkish business partner, Kubilay Atmaca, is accused of selling property to 70 couples in Altinkum, on the south coast of Turkey, and providing fake title deeds so that they would think that they owned property which they in fact did not. The case is currently running in the Turkish courts but there are also outstanding cases against O'Kane in his native Northern Ireland.

If you're not familiar with the case you'll find some background information here, here, here, here & here. There's also some comment here, and probably plenty more if you do a search on the internet and you're anxious for more information. It's a big story in Turkey and, obviously O'Kane's native Northern Ireland from where most of the purchasers originate.

O'Kane denies all the charges, claiming that his Turkish partner, Atmaca, is entirely responsible for the scam.
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For a selection of property in Turkey click here.

For a list of agents selling property in Turkey click here.

For independent articles on overseas property click here.

For advice on purchasing in Turkey click here.

For news on the Turkish property market click here.

For new releases and product updates from Turkish agents click here.

For a selection of property exhibitions featuring Turkish property click here.

www.OverseasCafe.com

Spanish Property on Today with Pat Kenny

It was great to hear our Advice and Editorial contributor, Diarmaid Condon, interviewed in studio on the Today with Pat Kenny show yesterday morning. The piece was a rundown on the trials and tribulations of the Spanish property market, where things stand at the moment, is this a buying opportunity, etc.

We thought it was very informative and Diarmaid very much held his own in the company of the esteemed Mr. Kenny.

The link to the Spanish discussion on the programme is here, you'll need iTunes to play it which can be downloaded for free from the Apple Website.

On a more amusing aside. Straight after the Spanish property interview two musicians, a lady and a gentleman, entered the studio. Diarmaid had no idea who was to follow his interview and, shook hands with the gentleman not knowing who he was. It was only when he heard the ensuing music from outside the studio afterwards that he realised he had just shaken hands with Sir James Galway. Way to not be overawed.
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To view properties in Spain: Click Here

To View a List of Spanish Agents: Click Here

To View the most Recent News from Spanish Agents: Click Here

To View the Latest Spanish Property News: Click Here

To See a Listing of Upcoming Spanish Exhibitions: Click Here

To See a Selection of Advice on Purchasing in Spain: Click Here

Register now to receive our informative newsletter, save searches and tailor your OverseasCafe.com experience to your own needs.

www.OverseasCafe.com

It's a Buyer's Market - It's Official

Lest we be accused of 'talking down the market' - heaven forbid - we said we'd spread some good news to shake you from your Monday blues. And the news? Well it's not news to everyone and merely looking at things from a different perspective for some others.

It's a buyers market. You know what they say about clouds and silver linings as well as ill winds that blow no good? Well that's where we're at right now, or at least rapidly approaching it in any case. If you're in the market for a property overseas - particularly in the UK, US or Spain - then the world is your oyster - there are thousands of investors and homeowners out there willing to take your hand off from the elbow down, or possibly even the shoulder.

Home repossessions are running at all-time highs and, if you're a potential investor, this is good news. Obviously it's awful news for those having their properties repossessed, but you're refusing to buy the houses isn't going to help them any and if you don't buy them someone else will. The poor misfortunates don't normally own these properties anymore in any case, most of them are being sold by their current owners - cuddly, loveable banks.

If you're looking for auctions and valuations in the UK you could visit or www.eigroup.co.uk or www.netpricehouses.com. For Spain take a look at the Direct Auctions site. If you're in the market for foreclosed property in the US this particular initiative in Florida may be of interest.

If you've got cash and don't have to borrow, or at least don't have to borrow more than 50% of the value, then you are even better off. Once effusive banks are rapidly becoming very reticent to shovel cash out over the counter to buy-to-let investors since their activities in the sub-prime market has shown them to be a complete shower of muppets. So now they're gone into reverse and even those with meticulous credit records are finding it difficult to raise finance. We're returning to the old scenario of banks not being willing to give you money unless you can prove you don't need it.

On the positive side (and this is a very positive post) the Euro is at record highs against a number of currencies, most notably Sterling and the US Dollar, so our purchasing power is significantly better than it was not that long ago. Not only that, if cross currency rates return to their former levels you'll have made a paper profit with no extra effort. Of course there is no guarantee that they will return to these levels, but the potential can add a nice bit of extra spice to your investment in any case.

Warren Buffet very famously said one of the keys to investment is to be 'Fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful' - well others are absolutely bricking it at the moment so the time to strike may well be nigh. Just be wary, re-possessed housing isn't always located in the best areas so be certain you're very sure of the area in which you're proposing to invest. Just because it's cheap or is being sold for 1/3 the price for which it was purchased doesn't necessarily mean it is good value.
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For a selection of property from around the world click here.

For a listing of agents selling overseas property click here.

For independent articles on overseas property click here.

For advice on purchasing property overseas click here.

For news on the world of overseas property click here.

For new releases and product updates from agents around the world click here.

For a list of upcoming overseas property exhibitions around the country click here.

www.OverseasCafe.com

Free Promotion on OverseasCafe.com

If you are an agent and you want to promote your wares to the highly focussed audience of overseas property visitors you will find on the OverseasCafe.com website then there are a few things you can do to make sure people find you.

Firstly, get listed. It's free and at least you've got a foot in the door. Simply click the Register link and choose to list as an agent. Fill in your details and once you have been passed by Admin that's it, you've got a presence on the site.

Of course a presence on the site isn't everything, because there are hundreds of other agents there as well, you need to promote your Unique Selling Point (USP). To be seen you really need to have content on the site, preferably reasonably regularly. Content can be in the form of press release articles, news, advice or exhibition dates.

Press release articles include information on releases of new product, new phases coming on-line, promotions, price changes, etc. This information can be uploaded to the site directly from your account, simply log-in and click on Articles at the top of the page, then click on Add a News Article. Once the content has been passed by Admin your article will appear live on the site.

You can also present news articles to the site. These could involve details of changes to tax or legal rules, local news that would affect potential property buyers, etc. This information will have to be submitted by email to info@OverseasCafe.com. It will be uploaded with full credit to your company in the News section of the site.

If you have upcoming exhibitions or seminars around Ireland these can be promoted using the Exhibitions link at the top of your page when you are logged into the site. Once passed by Admin your exhibitions will appear live on the site.

Finally, you can upload property to the site for free. When logged in, click on Properties at the top of your screen and then on Add Property. This will allow you to upload your property details singly or in bulk.

All the above facilities are COMPLETELY FREE, but if you want to stand out from the crowd you will need to consider paying for some advertising on the site.

The cheapest method of promotion is to invest in some Premium Properties which appear at the top of all searches on the site. When logged in you can fund your account by following the Purchase Property Clicks link on the Properties page. Once you have funded your account you can change as many of your properties as you wish to Premium Properties (edit the properties and click on the Premium Property option, properties can be allocated and changed as you wish once funds have been assigned to the account). This will bring your properties to the top of any searches conducted on the site improving your visibility greatly. Remember to make the names of your properties representative of what you are selling, this will increase traffic greatly.

If you really want to be seen on the site and wish to brand your company on the Irish market then banner advertising comes highly recommended. Companies with banners on the site receive multiples of the amount of clicks as those who don't proving that, if people can't see your brand very obviously, they are less aware that you exist. When you have a presence they will associate it with other information and properties you have on the site which greatly increases the chance that they will visit your site and ultimately invest in a property or service with your company.

To upload banners to the site, log in and click on the Manage Banner Adverts link half way down your home page. Here you can upload banners to the site and dictate on what parts of the site you wish them to appear. It also allows you to calculate how many days the amount you propose to spend will last on the site for the pages you've specified. It is an extremely flexible system as you get to control exactly how much you spend and where you spend it.

When you are considering banner ads on the site remember that the more focussed they are the better they will perform. We recommend three step GIF adverts (these flash three consecutive banners of information to the potential audience, you can see examples of these on the site). These adverts can introduce the company and its logo on the first banner, a specific product or property on the second banner and the sales pitch on the third banner. It is a very efficient method of promoting your message to the highly focussed audience you will find on OverseasCafe.com.

You can also choose a package option, where we will suggest a range of ways in which your product can be promoted on the site and in its monthly newsletters. For full details of the packages available simply email info@OverseasCafe.com and we will forward details to you.

If you've problems with any of the above please feel free to contact info@OverseasCafe.com and we'll be glad to help you in any way we can.

www.OverseasCafe.com

Irish Property Law Website

Those of you unfamiliar with Michael Lynn and his recent antics you should take a look at our previous blog on the matter.

Recently while browsing around the web we were surprised to find more than a few remnants of the bould Mick lying around the place (apart from the obvious references to his failures to appear in court, mortgage fraud, etc). For a start the website for his overseas property law firm, www.overseaspropertylaw.com, is still alive and kicking (or at least it was at time of typing this blog) and looking very well it has to be said.

The part of the site which claims 'Irish Buyers Misguided on Need for Lawyers Overseas' is extremely ironic and would be funny if the whole episode weren't so serious for those individuals defrauded by Mr. Lynn.

Actually, the contents of the site are fine, and most of the information there is factual and correct. It is just unfortunate that Lynn appears to have taken the 'road far less travelled' and done a bunk with money from, not alone the banks, but from a large selection of unsuspecting property buyers as well. We did try using the contact details on the site but, surprise, surprise, they don't work.

The Kendar Holdings and Kendar Global websites have now passed into oblivion, although the latter did hang around in Ireland for a lot longer than Lynn himself. Lynn has also maintained his position on RateMySolicitor.com but it's hardly a ringing endorsement of his professional career in Ireland. Long before there were any rumblings about his property dealings and multiple mortgage scams there were some atrocious reviews of him and his practice on the site. Maybe the Law Society should use it as a means to flag potentially dodgy solicitors, as they don't seem to be capable of finding them by any other means.

If you want to find a more reliable listing of advisors who may be able to help you in your quest to purchase overseas then you should search the advisors on the OverseasCafe.com website.

For a list of articles on the site relating to Lynn and his activities click here.

www.OverseasCafe.com

When is a Governing Body not a Governing Body?

The Irish overseas property industry is completely unregulated then? Well not completely, but almost at the moment. If you take a look at our piece on the newly created NPSRA (and a bit of a blog on it previously) you'll have noted that there are moves afoot, intended to make the Irish property industry a whole lot safer for the consumer. Let's hope the NPSRA is successful and give it all our support to enable it to do its job properly.

On that issue, however, you may have noted that there are a number of 'associations', 'federations', 'organisations' or 'unions' to which various developers and agents are often aligned. It is, of course a perfectly pertinent question to ask, "what validity do any of them have and what exactly do they do?". Well, some of them do absolutely nothing, apart from acting as a means of promoting those in their organisations, others do perform some form of regulatory function, except with limited recourse to actions against their members. The NPSRA is the only statutory body that we are aware of to take on such a function, and that's not in full operation yet as it needs to have final laws passed to enable it to perform the functions envisaged for it.

Of the more common bodies you'll find in the overseas industry both the Federation of Overseas Property Developers, Agents and Consultants (FOPDAC, which has recently teamed up with the NAEA in the UK) and the more recently formed Association of International Property Professionals (AIPP) are pretty well known and both are fairly highly rated in the industry. Both have 'vetting procedures' and 'codes of conduct' to which members are obliged to comply, otherwise they face expulsion. Unfortunately for both, this is as far as they can go, there is no means of preventing the offender from being involved in the overseas industry. Until the legal advent of the NPSRA here, there still is no body that can essentially 'shut down' a rogue agent.

Another organisation we have come across is the EEAU which doesn't seem to be held in the same esteem as the others mentioned. Apparently the organisation was thought to have disbanded a few months back but seems to have bounced back from what would normally be seen as a terminal problem.

The feedback from within the industry is that this organisation was previously known for getting information into the media that 'wasn't necessarily correct' and that it is essentially a 'for profit organisation masquerading as a trade body.' It has no vetting procedures and its website is essentially a property portal (nothing against that, we are a property portal, but we're not claiming to provide regulation within the industry). In any case, the information gleaned could hardly be considered a ringing endorsement so we wouldn't advise you to put too much faith in the EEAU badge if you do come across companies using it.

As an amusing aside, the first paragraph of the EEAU homepage claims to offer protection against "rouge estate agents", so if you know of anyone in the industry who isn't wonderful at applying make-up or uses too much foundation you might report them.

www.OverseasCafe.com

Exhibition Seminars

Having just visited the Property Expo in the RDS a constant bugbear reared its ugly head. What is the point of seminars at an exhibition that are all given by exhibitors who are already present at the show? Are you not simply going to get the same spiel that you would on their stand, except without the chance to ask questions as you go? Or am I wrong and is there an inherent value to such seminars? If there is I have to say I fail to see it.

On the subject of the show, while most agents felt the Friday was slow, they were at least kept relatively busy on the stands and there appears to be more confidence than there was at the end of last year. Everyone did feel it was a bit fragile though, and could be killed off pretty easily by Mick Lynn's affairs appearing in the newspapers again or something similar happening elsewhere.

All in all, though, there appears to be a bit more hope than there was last year.

http://www.overseascafe.com/

Lisbon Coast

On a recent trip to Lisbon it was interesting to see what is planned for this region and all it has to offer the tourist, golfer and property enthusiast alike. In Ireland we are inclined to link Portugal with just the Algarve but the Lisbon area has an awful lot to offer, even for those just travelling for the golf.

There are a number of high quality courses in the region, some with property on them already such as Praia D'El Rey and CampoReal to the north of the city along the Silver Coast or Costa de Prata. Bom Sucesso is a very interesting project as well, a huge array of very talented designers have been brought together to develop one of the most courageous and innovative golf developments I've personally ever seen. The golf course isn't playable yet, it should be by June 2008, but from an in depth trip around the course it does look like it is going to be a very good one. The way in which the property is being hidden on the course is also very innovative. This isn't going to be one for the Portuguese purist however, none of your standard Portuguese property design to be found here.

To the south of the city, along the Blue Coast or Costa Azul, is if anything, possibly even more interesting. The news that the new airport is to be located in Alcochete, to the south of estuary to the river Tagus, has come as somewhat of a boon to those in the south, although the addition of a new bridge should ease matters somewhat for those heading north.

The TroiaResort is, apparently, very worthy of a look (it was closed for renovations while I was there) but the plum development here may well be the new project currently underway at Pinheirinho Golf and Leisure Resort. It is a truly marvellous site and the beach, although 500 metres from the golf course, will be a real attraction. It is being done in a natural and ecofriendly manner, which is in itself quite unusual. The golf course won't be ready for a few years yet, they're currently only clearing the site, but if properly done this could well be one of the best courses in Portugal in years to come.

Another notable to the south of Lisbon is the more mature Quinta do Peru golf and country club which has a range of villas around the course. This is a lovely course to play, unless you have a fear of bunkers, and the climate in this part of Portugal makes it a joy to play, even in the end of January. It is also a lot easier to play in the summer than the Algarve, which can become unbearably hot in July and August.

You'll find our columnist, Diarmaid Condon, writing about the Lisbon Coast in the Sunday Business Post this weekend (it's at this link). Ginetta Vedrickas has also done a piece for the OverseasCafe.com website based on this wonderful stretch of Atlantic coastline, click here to see it.

Welcome to OverseasCafe.com Blog

Hi all,

welcome to the OverseasCafe.com Blog. Here we hope to update you with particulars of what is going on in the Overseas Property market, particularly with reference to the Irish and Northern Irish markets.

We will also be dropping in some bits and pieces from contributors to the site as they return from their travels overseas searching out the best property markets and deals for all our viewers.

For all the best in overseas property visit http://www.overseascafe.com/

Many thanks from the OverseasCafe.com staff