Genuine Standards For Investors In UK Property

It has been revealed that the weakness of the pound against the dollar and the euro is making the UK an appealing proposal for real estate investors in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena).

According to property management company Asteco, the outflow of investment from the area into the UK commercial property market since May 2008 was at peak Dh3.5 billion.

"The UK seems like an attractive destination for the Mena region because of the exchange rate gains and the recession in the economy," indicate by Asteco international investment consultant Richard Angel. "The rest of the Europe is simply lagging behind because there have been massive capital value cuts in the UK alone from a yield viewpoint.

"With the dirham being associated to the dollar there is now savings of around 20 per cent as compared to six months back for investments from the Mena region in the UK.

"Attaining UK loans is of most talk about for investors at present but not so in the cash-rich in Mena. Whereas the shortage of equity even now demonstrates in difficulty as there are more cash-rich investors in this region."

The Bank of England last week trimmed down its base rate to 1.5 per cent, the lowest in its 314-year history.

UK loans provider Nationwide has calculated that the value of residential property across the UK was down by 15.9 per cent last year.

Asteco is expecting an average dip of around 10 per cent in commercial property values in 2009 against a 30 per cent to 35 per cent cutback in 2008. The company indicates that around 26,000 mortgages were sanctioned in the UK last month.

"In detail knowledge of the local market is really vital to make sure the most suitable value is attained," said Angel. "Whereas there is always a great chance to make good investments in London. The present market conditions build up a clear advantage for the foreign investor.";

"The UK, especially London, is a proven market with vigorous long-term fundamentals. Grown up markets like London have been through several prior cycles, undergoing with both peaks and depression, so to some extent the longer term movements can be predicted.

News Categories