Russians step up global property investment
The country, which has seen its GDP double since 1999, now boasts the world’s fifth largest economy – and with 1 million of the population considered to be “mass affluent”, holdng up to $425,000 in cash, they are looking to spend that wealth somewhere.
Indeed, Russians continue to be a driving force in the UK housing market, accounting for 8.5 per cent of London property sales worth over £2 million between March 2012 and March 2013, notes Knight Knox. New builds are also of interest, with just under 70 per cent of new home sales in the last two years accounted for by Russia, China and the Middle East.
It is not just the UK: Russians are an increasingly important factor in many global markets. In Turkey, Russia accounted for 1,388 transactions in the first half of 20143, the highest of any country and almost double the amount purchased by the UK.
“This surging interest in overseas properties is exemplified most notably by the increasing attendance rates at property exhibitions showcasing overseas products in the country,” Knight Knox tells TheMoveChannel.com as it prepares to attend property shows in Moscow.
“The Russian Property Summit held in November last year saw a 15 per cent rise in attending overseas property delegates and even more impressively, a staggering 335 per cent increase in the number of Russian based realtors who attended the networking sessions”.
Other property investment news around the world:
Hong Kong market cooling
Hong Kong’s housing market remained slow in August as the cooling measures continue to take effect. Sales fell to 3,407 in August 2013, the lowest monthly total since January 2013, according to Knight Frank. Existing home sales are expected to stay low until homeowners are willing to reduce prices, Knight Frank’s report predicts, noting that developers are expected to lower prices in the coming months: since the Change of the country’s regulations, projects have been taken off the market or postponed and launched with new, redefined sales strategies that comply with new rules.
“With various cooling policies in place and market sentiment remaining cautious, we believe there will be a drop in activity in both the primary and secondary markets over the year,” forecasts Knight Frank, anticipating residential sales to fall 20 per cent during the rest of the year.
Cyprus: the world’s weakest housing market?
Cyprus is the world’s weakest housing market, according to Global Property Guide, with prices suffering the most severe fall of any other city, region or country in the world. Nicosia in Cyprus saw prices plummet 12.74 per cent in the second quarter of 2013 year-on-year, a drop even sharper than Greece, where values plunged 11.12 per cent. The news follows a string of falling prices and weakening demand from buyers on the island, as Cyprus aims to attract Chinese investors to its struggling market.
Source: Cyprus Property News