When you’re buying abroad, especially through a company that’s unfamiliar to you or where there are language difficulties involved, legal issues can get complicated. But a recently launched website can now help quell legality issues and ease the worry for people buying property in Turkey.

Is My House Legal allows buyers to check whether a new property development has legal paperwork, planning permission, a building license and is problem-free, before they sign on the dotted line and commit to buy. The checks are carried out by the International Law Partnership, so you can be sure you are obtaining credible information.

The website maintains information on developments that have already been checked as well as some helpful background information about legal issues in the country. You can click on any of the already checked developments and see the information provided by the seller and then the information obtained by the International Law Partnership

The site currently covers Turkey, but there are plans to extend the service to over 30 countries, including Bulgaria, France, Spain, Slovakia and Russia. The information obtained is really useful for buyers, but it shouldn’t be used as an alternative to independent legal advice. If you’re seeking extra peace of mind that the development you’re interested in is above aboard, then this site looks like it will prove to be a useful resource.

Finland’s snowy Lapland landscapes are drawing in the tourists – and the property investors too.

It may be best associated as being the legendary home of Santa Claus, but Lapland
also has many other worthy characteristics. The number of tourists visiting the area, especially Brits, has increased over the last few years and now stands at over four million per year. In the winter, it’s possible to ski for six months of the year in Finland, and offers more guaranteed and longer lasting ski conditions than some other European resorts.

Winter 2007 saw the opening of the first cable car and the Finnish government have outlined plans to invest heavily in the tourist industry. As far as property goes, property experts say the rental yields are currently about 6% to 7% and prices are predicted to rise by up to 300% in the next 10 years.

But that’s not all. For those choosing to buy offplan, there are other benefits to be had, if you keep your eyes open and check the small print before you sign. Some companies, for example, place the deposit from the buyer into the hands of the government. So if things don’t go to plan and the work on the development stops, or the buyer decides they don’t want to purchase the property after all, they are able to easily get their deposit back (minus a small administration fee).

Lapland is a good bet for buy-to-let properties, as there are already good attractions –skiing, adventure sports and the pre-Christmas Lapland experience holidays – that draw in the tourists.

Record migration and a mining boom in the resources-rich state of Western Australia has led to unprecedented demand for property, with many home-buyers and investors choosing to protect themselves against skyrocketing prices by buying off plan in new developments.

Traditionally, Australians have preferred to see the finished product before opening their chequebooks, but a housing shortage has led to an increase in the number of off plan purchases, with buyers reassured by the certainty of having somewhere to call home. But property developers are also cashing in, some reporting that their entire allocation of apartments is selling off the plan in just days.

The first stage of the Claremont Residences, part of global construction company Multiplex’s revamp of an old shopping centre site, sold out within two days. The development is scheduled for completion in 2009. Another Multiplex property, The Esplanade Nedlands, sold out in even less time, with 37 apartments selling off plan in one and a half days, at an average $2.6 million (AUD). The Capital Square development, a joint venture between Saville Australia  and Babcock and Brown has reportedly taken $300 million in off plan sales to date, as part of a wider trend where apartments in Western Australia are starting to cost as much as homes.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics  reports Western Australia is leading the nation in population growth, at a rate of 2.3 per cent, largely driven by overseas migrant and workers attracted by large-scale mining and infrastructure projects. It took nearly 100 years after settlement for Western Australia to reach the half million population mark, yet projections show the state’s population could grow by that much again in the next decade.
These pressures on the market are producing higher values, with the latest figures from the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia  showing some parts of the state have experienced up to a 24 per cent increase in property values in the last 12 months. Investors make up a quarter of property purchasers in the state.

Housing construction data shows that despite an upturn in the number of new constructions, the state is still experiencing huge demand for new construction and land release.

A small living space right in the middle of the city’s hustle and bustle may not seem like everyone’s dream come true. For many Canadians, however, owning a condominium equals an urban paradise that’s tough to beat. As cities like Cal-gary, Vancouver, and Toronto grow, Canadians are finding, more often than not, that having a condo to call their own is a convenient and affordable way to buy into the real estate market. A decade ago, young Calgarians combed the suburbs to find their first home. Communities out of the city core were bigger, cheaper, newer, and quieter than their urban counterparts. The only sacrifice was a moderate commute to work. By the end of 2007, however, those moderate commutes had transformed into hour (or more) long treks each way, every day. The drive can be so long that buyers are now taking into account their monthly fuel bill along with their mortgage pay-ments before they commit to purchasing a home. The dozen or so communities Calgary has added to its outskirts over the last ten years are so far from down-town that many Calgarians have been searching for a more practical housing al-ternative. Enter the condominium. It’s central. It’s low-maintenance. It’s affordable. In 2007, Calgarians paid an average of $156,000 less  for a condo than they did for a single-family home, not to mention the savings in travel and main-tenance costs. Residents of Vancouver  followed suit, with multi-family homes (such as condos) accounting for nearly 60% of residential purchases last November. Further east, in Toronto (http://www.remaxcondosplus.com/report-display.php?id=88&report_date=1199250000), realtors struggle to find listings to show clients interested in purchasing a condo; most decent properties are snapped up the moment they become available. To a buyer, average Canadian house prices are rising so fast that the negatives of owning a condominium often seem inconsequential. Yes, condos can be smaller and noisier than single-family dwellings. Yes, they are often less private, with little to no outdoor space. However, the benefits of owning a condo - namely, affordability and ease of ownership - far outweigh its drawbacks in the eyes of many Canadians. With skyrocketing prices and sparse availability in cit-ies, many Canadians are waving goodbye to visions of a yard and a white picket fence, and are only too happy to find a condo to call home.