When you’re buying property overseas, it’s important that you carefully do your research and take the opportunity to make at least one viewing trip before signing on the dotted line.

It may seem obvious, but some buyers are so taken in with the brochure or sales pitch that any thoughts about going to visit the property or surrounding area fly out of the window. To make sure the purchase you’re about to make really is the right one for you and is in a decent location, it’s always advisable to go and check it out. Many companies run viewing trips, so it’s always worth asking if there’s anything coming up, or you could arrange a trip independently.

As well as viewing the actual property or development, some of the other issues you may want to explore are the location, the immediate neighbourhood, the ease of access from airports or stations and local amenities.

A property in a quiet spot may initially appeal but when you see it in person the impracticability of living far from other neighbours or local amenities may become much clearer. Likewise, holiday homes located a long way from good travel links may look great on paper, but when you’ve travelled there yourself you can get a better idea of how long a journey actually takes. If it’s a drag for you and you’re thinking of renting the property, your potential renters may be put off by the lack of accessibility.

A lot can be gained by exploring the local neighbourhood, looking at the kinds of leisure facilities and amenities available and the reaction of locals to holidaymakers and expats. Positive signs include re-developments, regeneration, new businesses and new shops – all indicators that an area is on the up.

Hot on the tail of my previous post, discussing the benefits for property investors of airlines introducing new flight destinations, EasyJet has announced that it will be flying to 32 more destinations by summer 2008.

The move comes as a result of EasyJet’s purchase of Gatwick-based GB airways, a British Airways franchise, in October 2006. Although the finer details are still being finalised, and GB airways will still be operating the routes until 29 March, tickets for summer flights to many of the 32 new destinations are now on sale.

This is great news for property investors, as it means there will be increased opportunities for people to easily, and affordably, travel to more countries worldwide. What’s more, many of the new flight destinations are in key holiday zones, which means there may be more rental opportunities for existing holiday home owners.

“This is very exciting for people who are looking to, or have purchased property, in one or more of the 32 new destinations that EasyJet has announced. Whether they are holiday homes or investment property, there are gains to be had from the increased flights,” Steve Worboys, director of Experience International said.

EasyJet will now be offering a choice of 66 routes from Gatwick and six from Manchester. The new Gatwick routes include:

Ajaccio (Corsica)
Bastia (Corsica)
Corfu
Crete (Heraklion)
Cyprus (Paphos)
Dalaman
Gibraltar
Gran Canaria (Las Palmas)
Hurghada
Lanzarote (Arrecife)
Madeira (Funchal)
Majorca (Palma)
Malta
Menorca (Mahon)
Montpellier
Mykonos
Nantes
Rhodes
Sharm El Sheik
Tenerife (South)

And the new Manchester routes are:

Crete (Heraklion)
Cyprus (Paphos)
Malta
Tenerife (South)

It’s that time of the year again when we all look for a fresh start, to wipe the slate clean and start again. Christmas does this to us all because it marks the end of the old year and the beginning of the next. Most of us do literally stop just before Christmas and startup again in January.

Unlike any other break such as a summer holiday, for many of us the Christmas marks an end and a beginning and we all have more time for reflection than we have at any other time. We reflect on all aspects of our lives evaluating the good the bad and the ugly. Sadly for some this will mean starting the New Year by leaving a marriage or a relationship which makes today Manic Monday, as described in an article in The Times.

Manic Monday doesn’t just happen today – it happens at this time of the year every year, and as a sophisticated property investor – you should make a note in your diary. It’s a fact of life, a sad one, but a period of time to be aware of. When relationships break down one partner will be looking for a new home. So today will be especially busy for letting agents. That’s why it’s important for you to make a note of this date.

There are other important dates for your diary; one of which ties in with ‘Manic Monday’ and that is the property developer’s end of year. Most UK property developers have a year that ends at the end of December, or the end of June. End of year or end of half year are usually frantic times for property developers as they will be keen to hit their targets against forecasted sales.

Important fact – sales people have targets. Hitting targets gives them commission and bonuses. Large property developers are divided into regions, and each will have a target that cascades down from the Sales Director, to Sales Managers, to Sales Executives etc.

Here are another couple of dates for your diary – The middle of May and the middle of November. These dates are about as late as you could push it to complete a deal using a mortgage with a big developer.

If you want to get a super deal from a developer for a stock unit – the time to ask is in the middle of May or the middle of November. If you have cash – you can leave it much later – but you must complete the deal before the developer closes the book.

If you have just completed the purchase of a stock unit from a major developer and are looking for a tenant – Manic Monday might be good news for you.