One of the major attractions of purchasing a skiing property in the US rather than Europe is the cost. Since the global recession, US property has tanked and has yet to fully recover. This means that there are more opportunities for investors at both ends of the scale – budget ski properties and luxury skiing properties. Estate agents in Colorado have said that some properties have seen price drops of up to 35pc since their highest point and this has piqued the interest of increasing numbers of international property buyers.

Aside from the price, Colorado is an east place to get to. For skiers, it offers regular snow falls, slopes to suit any ability and it tends to be slightly quieter than the European ski resorts. During the off season, there are plenty of things to do in the area meaning there is no shortage for rental potential all year round.

Europe has also seen a price drop however the US still tends to win on a ‘bang for your buck’ basis – although Europe still remains an excellent proposition for those looking to invest in ski property.

The price reductions on European ski properties are not as great as those that have been seen in the US however they still offer great value for money, especially in the more popular ski resorts, as there will always be rental demand in the area.

Wherever you choose to purchase your ski property, the basic principles of buying remain the same:
- Altitude is not the most important factor; look for properties when it is ski in/ski out
- Infrastructure should be good
- Accessibility to the local ski areas should be excellent
- Good local amenities are a bonus
- Consider a leaseback scheme if you want to take some of the stress out of managing the property

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Floridian property experts Property Frontiers believe that the sunshine state has finally reached the bottom of the cycle and that home prices will slowly but surely begin to once again increase. This feeling is echoed by the Florida Association of Realtors (FAR) who has reported a 24% increase in existing home sales in March 2011 compared to the same time last year.

“A variety of housing opportunities are available at attractive prices across the state, while mortgage interest rates remain historically low,” said Patricia Fitzgerald, 2011 Florida Realtors President.

Condominium style properties in particular are leading the way for sales with 9,703 units sold in March 2011 alone and it is foreign investors driving this come back. Non-US citizens, especially European residents are seeing low bank interest rates in their home countries and Florida today offers exceptional value for money in terms of the size and specification of property that you can purchase, the positive prospect of market recovery as well as homes offering appealing returns. Buyers can become the proud owners of a four bedroom condo with pool close to Disneyland for $150,000 in today’s market; prior to the market crash these properties would be sold for at least double that.

Florida remains one of the most popular global holiday destinations, something that British Airways is capitalizing on by increasing their long haul flights to Tampa to a daily service in response to the demand for travel stateside. This continued popularity for Florida tourism, some 82.6 million visited in 2010, an encouraging 2.1% increase on 2009 numbers, reinforces why buy to let investors with a keen eye on the market are now dipping into their pockets to secure their Floridian bricks and mortar, right at the beginning of the recovery in order to make maximum returns.

Ray Withers, Director of Florida property investment experts, Property Frontiers, comments, “As with every market the old adage reins true of location, location, location. It is important for buyers not to be blinkered by some of the really cheap deals on offer in Florida; most of the time, cheap is simply cheap.

“You won’t attract the crucial holiday rental market to a low specification property in an out of town location, also the poorly located properties will be the last to come through the market depression and at a time when on the whole the property market appears to be at rock bottom spelling future positivity for investors, this would be a critical and costly mistake to make”.

Highgate Residences at Regal Palms for example in Davenport, just one hour from Tampa, unlike many below market value property offerings, is zoned for short term rentals which allows owners to let to holiday makers seeking fun and adventure at the nearby themes parks such as Walt Disney World and Sea World. These holiday lets will earn investors a guaranteed 8% net yield per year with only a modest 64% occupancy rate required to achieve this. Highgate Residences is a turnkey and hassle free investment opportunity which also offers plenty of personal usage for owners so they can make the most of their 3 or 4 bedroom upscale townhouses.

A limited number of townhouses are available at Regal Palms from $99,000 so contact Property Frontiers today on +44 (0) 1865 202 700 for more information or visit www.propertyfrontiers.com

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Cheap cash deals are driving more than half the sales. The Orlando Sentinel reports: “Usually a drop in prices means a boost in sales, but January’s total was down sharply from December, which is the historical pattern. Only 1,950 sales were recorded for the month by the local Realtors group, down 21 percent the previous month and the slowest month in a year.

“A record 75 percent of January’s closings were distress sales, either foreclosures (bank-owned properties) or short sales (with prices less than the mortgage owed). That was the highest proportion of cut-rate properties since January 2010, when 72 percent of all sales involved distress properties. Since the Orlando association began tracking distress sales in May 2009, the core market’s distress-sale low was 42 percent in July 2009.

Bill Cowie, director of Anglo/USA realtors British Homes Group which specialises in helping Florida property buyers from the UK says: “We keep saying that Florida prices are at or near rock bottom but these figures show that prices have continued to fall. For the cash-rich investor, it is all about whether it will be possible to accurately predict the absolute bottom of the market and when to re-enter it. To have a situation where house prices are back to 1997 levels is in itself unprecedented and a superb opportunity to buy into some quality real estate in superb locations.

“The number of houses on the market actually declined slightly from December to January and has now shrunk for six months in a row. This is a good indication that the supply is tailing off.

“Tourism is still flourishing and the rental market is still strong and we are finding that overseas buyers who want to let their properties to holidaymakers keen to experience the Orlando theme parks and Florida beaches can often cover their costs of ownership.

“Therefore canny investors and lifestyle purchasers need to only do the numbers to see that much of this cut-price real estate in Florida is at a level which makes sense financially on all levels. Don’t wait too long only to find rock bottom has already been and gone and prices are once more moving upwards to reflect the real value of these beautiful homes.”

The Orlando area’s median home price in January was less than $95,000 — the lowest midpoint for sales in more than 13 years. (KAREN BELLVILLE BEAMAN, ORLANDO SENTINEL / February 14, 2011)

The Orlando Sentinal continues: “For homebuilders, the foreclosure-driven bleeding in median price continues to pressure the new-home market, said Brad Hunter, an economist for MetroStudy Inc.

“The inventory of foreclosure homes definitely remains a problem, both in terms of price pressure and builders’ sales paces,” he said. “Most builders I talk to say that their main competition comes from homes being sold off by banks, instead of [by] other builders.”

Hunter said he expects the price pressure to continue defining the market through 2011, with some “pockets of strength” where homebuilders will be able to gradually raise prices and sell homes.

Within the larger, four-county Orlando metropolitan area, the number of existing-home sales in January was up everywhere from a year earlier except Lake County: Orange was up 10 percent, Osceola was up 32 percent and Seminole was up 27 percent, while Lake was down 6 percent.

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For the first time in more than a decade, the average price of a home in Orlando has dropped to less than $100,000 (£63,933). The Orlando Regional Realtor Association this week reported that average home prices dropped 8% from July to a low of $99,900 in August and sales prices were down 22% from last year.

Orlando-based British Homes Group, a company set up by Brits for Brits considering buying property in Florida, say that many savvy investors are snapping up these bargain properties.

The last time existing houses were so cheap in Orlando was in May 1998, when a mid-range home cost $98,984. In comparison, only three years ago average prices peaked at $264,436.

The real estate industry blames the price drop on the end of the federal homebuyer tax credit and the fact that more than 70% of August sales were of distressed properties. In August, only 28% of sales were “normal” sales of properties not in financial trouble, and the remaining 72% were either bank-owned properties or short sales – when a house sells for less than the mortgage owed on it. One local Florida agent from Re/Max Select commented, “People want to buy something for $65,000 and, you know what, I can find it. And that’s scary. I wouldn’t live in any of it, but you can find it all over.”

Sales volume also dropped in August – local agents closed 2,429 sales which was down 3% from the previous month. Ironically the drop in prices and sales came at a time when interest rates actually became slightly more attractive to buyers, dropping from 4.67% in July to 4.61% in August.

However, the Orlando Regional Realtor Association believes that there are signs that the market is stabilizing. For example, the difference between sales and asking prices narrowed slightly from 94.44% in July to 95.04% in August and the inventory of houses listed for sale for over 6.5 months increased only slightly from July to August.

The British Homes Group has many examples of bargain properties on its website. It is featuring a 5 bedroom, 3 bathroom, 2000 sq foot home with private pool on a beautiful residential community close to Disney for just $149,000 – this home had a previous price tag of over $350,000. The property has been approved for short-term letting so would attract a year round income from holiday makers visiting the famous theme park especially as it also has access to a fantastic community clubhouse, community pool and on-site fitness centre.

Lee Weaver of the British Homes Group comments, “We have an increasing number of Brits requesting bargain-priced holiday homes in Florida and this property is a perfect example of what is available. There’s now no need for Brits to buy one of the well-publicised re-possessed properties, which may not be in a good state of repair, when they can buy a new property for the same price or less.”

Lee Weaver continues, “Mortgages are available for British and other international buyers with a 30% down payment. Some of our customers are actually flying over from the UK – and even as far as Africa – to review these incredible property bargains, and are paying for their ‘mini-holiday’ with the substantial savings they are making on their Florida holiday home purchase.”

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The sheer quantity of properties being foreclosed, and the number of empty properties littering the state, left many investors nervous about buying property in Florida. However in recent months, interest has started to pick up again.

There are some definite bargains to be had with some flats in some condominiums on sale for as little as $15,000. However as with any property purchase – in Florida or otherwise – caution is advised. Some Florida properties are cheap for a reason – they could be in a rough neighbourhood or need complete renovation.

If you are planning to buy property in Florida, the first question is which area? The two coasts are very different: the west coast has a relaxed feeling with sub tropical temperatures and is centered on the Tampa and Sarasota, elegant and classy; the east coast is defined by Miami, a hectic city full of nightlife and luxuy.

On the west coast, there is plenty of choice although at the lower end of the market, there is plenty of competition. A two-bedroom lock-up flat within walking distance of the beach will probably set you back around $250,000. However it is better to go for a family home rather than a condominium as they tend to hold their price better and tend to have higher resale values and therefore represent a better overall property investment.

For Miami, there are plenty of property bargains to be had with prices down between 30 and 50% from their peak. Property prices are fairly stable now therefore property investment in Miami is a pretty safe bet.

BuyingForeignProperty.com recommends looking for land if you are looking for a long-term real estate investment as land values have dropped massively and it may be possible to grab some major bargains.

If you are planning to finance your propety investment with an American dollar mortgage, make sure you factor in fluctuating exchange rates into your calculations. You may also be able to take out a mortgage half in your home country’s currency and half in American dollars to help stabilise the fluctuations a little. Remember that you will be liable for real-estate tax which is an annual fee of 2% of the purchase price.

If you are planning to rent out your Florida property, check the small print of your property carefully as many condominium assoications have rules governing how many rentals you are allowed in a year. There may also be other local restrictions in force.

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“Both enquiries and sales are up”, says Lee Weaver of the Orlando-based British Homes Group, a company set up by Brits for Brits considering buying property in Florida. “These are clear indicators that the market is recovering. While the national housing bust has devastated property values, it has also created some outstanding bargain opportunities for would-be home buyers – if you know where to look.”

British Homes Group is not the only specialist claiming that recovery is at last in sight in Florida, America’s Sunshine State. In a recent independent national poll by IHS Global Insight’s Regional Estate Service, two destinations in Florida appeared in the top five most undervalued places to live in the US. The housing bust in the US has seen property values fall to 32% lower than their 2006 peaks but it has also created some fantastic bargain opportunities for buyers. Jeannine Cataldi, Senior Economist of IHS Global Insight’s Regional Real Estate Service comments, “What we have seen is that those markets that became significantly overvalued during the housing boom such as Florida, California and Nevada are right now very undervalued.”

The first Florida destination to appear in the poll is the upmarket retirement community of Naples, located on Florida’s southwest coastline. Home prices here have fallen by nearly 50% from the first quarter of 2006 to the first quarter of 2009. IHS Global Insight now considers the average home price in Naples ($200,000) to be 33% undervalued.

Similarly, house prices in Sarasota – an upmarket, artistic community on Florida’s west coast plunged by 44% from the first quarter of 2006 to the first quarter of 2009. HIS Global Insight now considers the average price in Sarasota ($141,000) to be 28% undervalued.

The Florida Association of Realtors states that the average sales price for existing Florida homes was $148,000 in June 2009, a 28% decrease from June 2008’s $205,300. The average condo price fell 37% from $180,400 last June to $112,900 this year.
British Homes Group has many examples of bargain properties on its website. For example a 5 bedroom, 3 bathroom home with swimming pool on the Lake Berkley Resort just 12 minutes from Disney in Kissimmee, Florida which is on sale for $215,000 (£133,207). In 2005 this property was valued at $438,850 (£271,592) which represents a 51% drop in price.

Lee Weaver of the British Homes Group comments, “We have an increasing number of Brits requesting bargain-priced holiday homes in Florida and this property is a perfect example of what is available. This a brilliant time for Brits to buy in Florida. Although house prices are so low at the moment. There are indicators that the property market is recovering. We think prices will ‘bottom out’ later this year after three years of spiralling downward and now is the time to buy before prices rise.”

The Federal Housing Finance Agency stated last week that single-family home prices nationally rose by 0.9 per cent from April to May in the US as a whole, marking the biggest jump this year. Signs of life in the housing market lifted shares of homebuilders such as Lennar, DR Horton and KB Homes as much as 6% last week. Ben Bernanke, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, commented that “the decline in housing activity appears to have moderated” and mortgage applications had swelled for three weeks running.

However, economists warned that the real estate market remained fragile. According to the S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index, home prices have dropped by a third since peaking in 2006, and the latest figures from RealtyTrac show rates of foreclosure have reached record highs this year. And year on year figures are still nothing to sing about – home prices nationwide dropped 17.1% in May 2009 compared with May 2008.

Average prices in Florida are still dropping, sales are up, indicating that it won’t be long before prices rise accordingly. The Florida Association of Realtors recently stated that existing single-family home and condominium sales grew in June – by 28% from 12,339 sales in June 2008 to 15,850 sales in June 2009. Similarly, a total of 5,241 condo units were sold in June 2009, a 39% increase from the 3,771 units that were sold in June 2008.”

Lee Weaver continues, “The supply of housing is another important measure. A market with six months of supply is considered by housing economists to be balanced between buyers and sellers. In Orlando, June’s inventory had 17,831 homes available through the Multiple Listing Service, which reflects an 8.4-month supply at the current sales pace. In January, the Orlando MSA had an inventory level that reflected a 23.6-month supply and it has steadily decreased since. It is definitely heading in the right direction towards the optimum level of 6 months.”

Randall Guttery, Professor of Real Estate at the University of North Texas added, “We are finally working through this excess inventory. Once we get that excess inventory taken off the market, we can get back to a more healthy supply-and-demand-driven market.”

Lee Weaver concludes, “For those thinking about buying a property in Florida, now really is the time to act before prices increase.”

About the British Homes Group

The British Homes Group guarantees impartial, professional advice on the current Florida market, on sales and mortgages and much more. BHG’s aim is to make the buying process for the UK purchaser completely smooth and hassle-free.
The British Homes Group is in a unique position in the Florida property market.

Based in Florida, it is staffed by a team of British and American professionals, experts in both UK and US property purchase and financing procedures. Through Florida’s ‘Multiple Listing Service’ and co-brokerage arrangements, BHG’s ‘British Homes Sales’ department has access to one of the largest selections of dream home and investment properties available in Florida.

The British Home Loans division is dedicated to providing personalised, private and unbiased Florida home loan advice on fixed and flexible mortgages from numerous competing lenders and in a variety of currencies.

The British Homes Group also provides excellent customer service up to and beyond completion including ongoing mortgage advice and advice on tax, insurance, immigration and visa matters. It will even help buyers to select furniture packages and interior design services and provides a free villa listing on one of the largest villa rental websites in the area.

For further information, please call Lee Weaver at British Homes Group on 0800 096 5989 or (+1) 407 396 9914 or visit www.britishhomesgroup.com

Kerry Clark, Tideway Communications, +44 (0)20 8878 0787 kerry@tidewaycommunications.com

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So what do you get for your money? 53,000 square feet of floor space (that’s 160 acres) with the main house boasting 10 bedrooms, a home theatre, bowling alley, obligatory swimming pool and a huge wine cellar which can accommodate 8,000 bottles of wine and has a special area for wine tasting with designated areas for different types of wine. And for your guests, there are four specially built cottages. Also included is a garage, which is estimated will fit up to 40 cars at any one time. Work starts on the house this June, and the house is set to be complete within 14 months.

The house has been made of stone and timber, with hand-carved fireplaces and vaulted ceilings. All outdoor driveways, patios and walkways are heated to ensure you are kept toasty, no matter what the weather.

The house is situated in the super-exclusive Yellowstone Club in Big Sky, Mont. The resort is so exclusive that not just anyone with money can buy – first, you must be invited to join. An initiation fee of $250,000 ensures that members are suitably well off, and you must commit to buying or building a property on the resort as well. Certain celebrities are ‘discouraged’ from applying for membership to ensure that the attitude remains good and that the resort retains it’s family-orientated view.

If you do buy, your neighbours will include Microsoft Head Honcho Bill Gates, Dan Quayle, golfer Annika Sorenstam and cycling legend Greg Lemond. In total, there is a limit on 864 propety owners, and current membership stands at about 250 at the moment.

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