Average Orlando property prices are reported to have dropped 8% from July to a low of $99,900 in August and sales prices were down 22% from last year allowing savvy property investors to snap up bargain properties.

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.  Read more... (589 words, 1 image, estimated 2:21 mins reading time)

The Singapore Government have announced new anti-speculation market measures over fears that double-digit property price increases are unsustainable in the long-term. The government are hoping that the new measures will create a more stable and sustainable property market.

Singapore properties are amongst the most expensive in Asia with prices rising 5.3% quarter on quarter in the second three months of the year and 5.6% in the first three. Even during the global financial troubles, the Singapore property market continued to grow, bucking the trend of many other nations.  Read more... (224 words, estimated 54 secs reading time)

Most people wouldn’t dream of buying a home in the UK without seeing it – walking through each room, inspecting the quality of the build, researching the local area and its amenities. But what happens if the home you want to buy is located hundreds if not thousands of miles away, overseas? The solution? An inspection trip.

Thousands of potential overseas property buyers go on inspection trips each year, be they organized privately or through an agent or developer. They are designed to offer buyers the opportunity to experience the culture of the country they wish to buy in, meet with local property experts who know the market and buying procedures and view properties which meet their requirements.  Read more... (666 words, 1 image, estimated 2:40 mins reading time)

Turkey continues to buck global trends with GDP growth rates of 12% recorded for Q1 2010, domestic banks increasing the availability of credit by up to 30% and now levels of foreign direct investment in Istanbul are up by 27% according to the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO).

Turkey’s second city and economic powerhouse, Istanbul, has become a honey pot for international investors with the number of foreign investors planning to establish businesses or expand their operations in Istanbul up by over 6% in the first half of 2010 (compared to the second half of 2009). The ITO released data also revealed a 27.16% increase in the total value of these investments for the same period.  Read more... (393 words, 1 image, estimated 1:34 mins reading time)

Think South of France and St Tropez, Cannes, Nice and Monaco will probably spring to mind but this summer all eyes are looking west of these traditional tourism destinations, to La Camargue – Western Europe’s largest river delta, just 1 hour from Marseille.

Covering some 930km, where the river Rhône meets the Mediterranean Sea, La Camargue occupies a coastal area between the Languedoc-Roussillon and Provence. Established as a national park and nature reserve in 1972, La Camargue contains exceptional bio-diversity with over 400 species of birds including the ubiquitous pink flamingos, the famous Camargue horses, unique breeds of bulls and now a new eco-friendly leaseback development.  Read more... (403 words, 1 image, estimated 1:37 mins reading time)

Investors can once again hold confidence in the Brazilian land market as the President of the ADIT (Association for Real Estate and Tourism Development in the north east of Brazil) has dismissed worries over proposed new restrictions on foreign nationals owning land.

Concerns over protection of Brazil’s natural resources led to President Lula da Silva reportedly calling upon ministers to tighten the laws on foreign ownership of land however ADIT President, Felipe Cavalcante, speaking with trade publication, OPP, commented that “these proposals only apply to agricultural land – any changes in the future would have no impact at all on people who have already invested in real estate.”  Read more... (697 words, 1 image, estimated 2:47 mins reading time)

Expats who paid out too much tax on their Spanish property sale may be entitled to a rebate amounting to thousands of euros, according to leading foreign exchange firm Currencies Direct.

The potential capital gains windfall for British expats who sold property in Spain before 2007 comes after the scrapping of a discriminatory Spanish tax law.

Now with the pound weak against the euro, and the clock ticking on securing refunds, all claims must be filed by 21st November this year. The Currencies Direct experts say there is no time like the present for expats to get their refund and repatriate the money.  Read more... (497 words, 1 image, estimated 1:59 mins reading time)