More flexibility for investors has meant a burgeoning number of people are looking at the overseas property market to secure their piece of the pie.
Like many other couples looking to match a secure investment for the future with a holiday home, Mervyn Pickard and Christine Saunders have taken the initiative and decided a new home in the sun will provide that all important nest egg.
Having spent a great deal of time looking at and researching the markets, Mervyn
and Christine decided that Crete was the destination for them. Not only would Crete provide a great return for villa rental but would offer a sunny, safe and tranquil place to retire to in years to come. It wasn't long before Mervyn and Christine had booked a holiday to the island with the intention of including a little r&r with looking for their ideal home in the sun.
In the early summer of 2005, after a short search of the properties available, Mervyn and Christine found the right site to build a house. They soon started the ball rolling by making a deposit on an off-plan 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom stone built house with a pool.
Much like the UK, any number of things can go wrong with a property sale or purchase and it didn't take long before things started to go wrong for Mervyn and Christine. Thanks to an excellent English speaking lawyer however Mervyn and Christine were made aware of the problems immediately. They decided to pull out of the sale and had their deposit returned to them straight away. It turned out that the builder did not own the land that he was proposing to build Mervyn and Christine's house on! The searches made by the lawyer at the time of conducting the purchase showed this and all was not lost.
Mervyn and Christine were very disappointed of course; however they are philosophical about their experiences and believe that it was maybe not meant to happen for them with this particular plot of land. They were not put off by their bad experience and explain that "Greece is much like the UK in many ways, property markets everywhere have their problems but systems are in place to provide security for the purchaser."
The one major down side to their failed purchase was the fact that they had lost valuable time and would now have to wait another year before making another foray into the Greek property market. This of course meant that prices would also be higher the next year so they would have to find extra money to cover cost of the price increase.
In September 2005 Mervyn and Christine visited A Place in the Sun Live, the exhibition based on the successful Channel 4 television show hosted by Amanda Lamb.
Mervyn and Christine met a number of developers and agents exhibiting their property and services at the show; they told us "We were impressed with the variety on offer and staggered at the sheer number of people visiting the show. It seemed like "Last one to leave England please turn off the lights!"
In May the following year Mervyn and Christine visited Crete for a second time were determined to secure their new home in Greece.
One of the developers Mervyn and Christine had visited at A Place in the Sun Live was Lifestyle Homes on Crete. They explain; "Right from the start Lifestyle Homes gave us confidence. They explained everything in great detail and even told us the down-side to what we were looking at and the problems we may face."
Ultimately Lifestyle Homes also had to have the right plot and style of building to suit Mervyn and Christine and happily for them they hit the nail on the head. Mervyn and Christine fell in love with a half finished 4 bedroom stone house near Almerida on the popular Apokoronas peninsular.
"The views were beautiful and there was plenty of land to put in a pool and have a small garden." They told us, "We knew there would be no problem renting out the villa as we had done our research. All the amenities were close by. The house came with everything fitted to accommodate a large family group. It was just perfect! Looking back now we realise that the first property was not for us and we have managed to get a great deal from Lifestyle Homes so we don't feel we have lost anything at all."
Mervyn and Christine take possession of their new home in early 2007.
Property prices in north western Crete have risen sharply over the last 12 months. In some areas around Vamos, the capital of the Apokoronas region, property has risen by up to 25%. This trend looks likely to continue as people switch-on to the fact that Crete really does offer the best all round package when it come to purchasing property overseas. With the lowest crime rate in Europe, officially the world's healthiest diet, great value for money compared with other European destinations and a summer season lasting from May to October, Crete offers a great deal to the investor and to those looking to retire to sunnier climes.
