10 Home Purchase Abroad Tips For Success

Are you seeking your little corner of sun drenched heaven on earth? If you are you're certainly not alone!

Many Northern Europeans, Americans and Canadians are looking overseas for investment real estate or for a holiday bolt hole and if you're considering buying a second home in the sun, a home from home abroad or an investment property overseas and you're in a hurry to get started, these top 10 home purchase abroad tips for success should set you off in the right direction.

1) Legal Advice

Legal systems differ from country to country so never assume that you understand how exactly the entire house purchase process is going to work, and never expect things to necessarily go exactly your way! To be assured of the fact that your personal interests are being looked after and that you, your money and your property are 100% secure, legal and legitimate it's essential to seek independent legal representation in the country you're considering buying property in.

This is especially true if you're buying property in a country where you do not speak the language. You will be putting your name, signature and bond to contracts and legally binding documents?and however pleasant and helpful the real estate agent or vendor are it's in your own best interests to make sure you have a local lawyer who's in your pay representing you at such times.

2) Build Times

If you buy off plan or you're self-building or renovating abroad you need to factor contingency into your overall time planning. Weather, seasonal pressures, holidays, availability of essential building materials ? the list of factors that can adversely affect the build time of a house is almost endless! Your builder may confidently assure you that your property will be completed by a given date, and yet, depending on where in the world you're buying your property, the completion date is likely to always be delayed! It's just 'one of those things'.

3) Setting a Realistic Budget

Another factor, like time, that can often spiral a little out of control is the budget. Often we're told that we should add an extra 10 - 20% on to any purchase price for fees and taxes; that's all very well, but actually you have to factor extra money into your budget for things like visiting your second property abroad during and after the build phase, extras like light fittings, curtains, kitchen and bathroom upgrades, the application for and connection of vital services, removal costs and/or furniture purchase costs, satellite TV installation, air conditioning or heating installation, car rental. If you have a set budget limit it's important to sit down and work backwards including all the potential extras and fees and then see exactly how much is left for your property purchase. Don't be caught out and seduced by the sunshine, set budgetary limits before getting on the plane!

4) Ongoing Communication

If you're buying a brand new property abroad ? either off plan or during its build phase ? make sure you have some way of keeping in touch with the developer or managing agent. Ask in advance about how often you will be kept up to date with progress, whether they can email or send you regular visual updates and what level of ongoing communication you can expect for them. Buying property is a very big commitment ? financially and emotionally ? it's important you're not left in the dark, sitting back home wondering how on earth your investment is coming along. Sort out your lines of communication before you sign on the dotted line and make sure you're entirely comfortable with how the process will work.

5) Overseeing & Managing

If you self-build abroad or purchase to renovate you will need someone on site or in the vicinity of the property to oversee and manage the on-going build process. If you employ someone to take on the project management you need to be assured of their experience and credentials, you also need to comfortable with any language or cultural differences and that they will not affect the successful outcome of the project. Ask for references, ask to see other properties they have managed, ask to see qualifications. In terms of language and cultural differences you need to make sure your words will be understood and interpreted correctly, you also need to be sure that any instructions are passed on correctly to the builders. Employing the right project manager is a very important task! Get it right and the project should be a dream, get it wrong and the concept of 'stress' is one that you will become increasingly familiar with!

6) What You See Versus What You Get

If you're buying off plan or remotely (e.g., from the comfort of your arm chair back home) you need written confirmation that what you see is what you get. All too often agents will show you the top of the range property and finish when your budget is going to buy you something slightly different. You need every detail confirming from the size and location of the plot, the size of the property with each room broken down, detailed floor plans with the location of windows, doors and integral items (from air conditioners to kitchens), the finish on doors, walls, floors, bathrooms, kitchens, external areas etc. And get some idea of the build quality. You might expect the quality to be on a par with what you have back home but you could be mistaken, what if there is no damp course or no cavity wall for example?! If possible visit other sites that the particular developer or builder has already completed to see the standards to which he builds to, and have all important site completion details written in to the contract with a clause stating you do not hand over final monies until you are 100% satisfied. Please don't assume anything! So many people get caught out because they don't ask the right questions at the right time.

7) Overseas Mortgages

If possible have any mortgage agreed in principal before jetting off to find your dream home in the sun. You need to know exactly how much money you are going to have before making any form of commitment to buy ? even if that is a verbal commitment. In some countries such a commitment is as legally binding as a final contract! Furthermore, make any real estate agent aware that you will be seeking a mortgage for the purchase of any property before setting out. Then, if you find a house you like make sure the purchase contract is conditional to you securing the finance you need.

8) Investment Potential

If you're looking to buy investment property abroad make sure you research the property market of the country you're examining. Look at it from the points of view of stability, growth potential and the liquidity of the resale market ? after all, it's all very well buying a property that then increases by 30% but what if you cannot then sell it?

9) Tax

Find out about both the local and overseas taxation liabilities relating to foreign property purchase, rental, resale and gains. As taxation issues and liabilities change on a country by country basis you have to make sure you do your own detailed research but expect to face purchase tax in the country you're buying in, gains tax if you sell within a given period and profit from the sale, also expect to pay some form of income tax either 'back home' or in the country in which the property is located if you rent it out for an income.

10) Property Purchase via an Offshore Company

The option to establish an offshore company for the purchase of real estate abroad is an option available to most people, but whether it is an appropriate course of action to take depends on many factors. Such factors include where in the world you wish to purchase, the value of the property and the laws relating to foreign ownership of real estate in that country. By using an offshore company to buy abroad an individual can sometimes avoid or reduce their taxation liability, avoid certain expenses and even laws. But the applicability of this option is something that can only be determined on an individual, case by case basis.

Rhiannon Williamson is the publisher of http://www.shelteroffshore.com/ - the online resource for expatriates, international investors and those dreaming of a new life abroad.

Shelter Offshore features three main channels - offshore investment, property investment abroad and overseas lifestyle.

---

Rental Properties: 10 Ways To Increase Income

What if you want better cash flow from your rental... Read More

Realty Agents: Don?t Ask Don?t Tell?

Real estate stories radiate from the water cooler and cocktail... Read More

Will a 1031 Property Exchange Solve Your Problems?

If your problem is listed below, a 1031 exchange may... Read More

Escalation Clauses ? A Home Buyers Secret Weapon

Today we discuss escalation clauses because much of the country... Read More

Maintaining Small Town Charm In An Ever-Changing World

Virtually any state in the country has the appeal of... Read More

Find Bucks in Yucks! 20-Year-Old Woman Turns Doghouses into Dollars!

Do you dream of making money in real estate? Do... Read More

French Property - a Buyers Guide to Purchasing Property in France

The CompromisThis document is the document you will sign agreeing... Read More

How Does Interest Rates Affect New Home Sales and Wheres The Best Place To Build?

These real questions on new home starts and interest rates... Read More

Why Property Investors can Crash and Burn

Many experts say you can't lose if you put your... Read More

Ten Steps for Becoming a Successful Real Estate Investor

The secret to success in real estate investment is finding... Read More

Apartment Loan 101

So you're interested in going into business as a property... Read More

Market Reaching its Peak

I do not profess to "Know" what the real estate... Read More

What We Do To Sell Your Property!

Once you have contracted us to sell your property we... Read More

A Few Easy Ways To Take The Headache Out Of Moving

Moving from one house to another is always a challenge,... Read More

Real Estate Investing In Bulgaria

As Bulgaria readies for joining the European Economic Community in... Read More

Real Estate Growth: How Long Will It Last?

There has been speculation in the media recently about the... Read More

Property Investment: Spoiled for Choice in Europes Emerging Markets

You could be forgiven for thinking that property is the... Read More

Buying a Home: The 5 Biggest Mistakes that a Home Buyer Makes

As a Professional Real Estate Inspector I get to see... Read More

Making a First Impression When Selling Your Home

So you've decided to take advantage of the booming real... Read More

Horses In My Back Yard

Horses In My Back Yard by Jody Hudson, with Extensive... Read More

The Most Sensible Investment Decision Youll Ever Make

So much advice is bandied about on the internet and... Read More

Questions You Always Wanted To Ask A Master Builder But Never Had The Chance

Building a house (or lots of them) seems to be... Read More

Writing on the Wall - Are REITs a Better Investment for You?

When I was a young child I had many annoying... Read More

How I Became a Real Estate Investor

Recently I closed on the sale of two homes. They... Read More

Selling Houses: Cutting Edge Design Tips for Selling

In this article, you're going to discover new techniques for... Read More

How To Go About Selling Your Home On Your Own

In days of booming real estate, you would think that... Read More

Real Estate Development Feasibility Study (Income) - $1.2 Billion Developer Tells You How To Do One

There are two sides to a feasibility study and in... Read More

OPM - The Art of Leveraging

Equity lender, hard money lender, private investor or what ever... Read More

An Estate Planning Primer

An estate plan can be designed by clients and their... Read More

Landlording And Other Aggravations

Here's the gripping story...You are the landlord of a small... Read More

The Listing Agents Role in Selling Your California Home

Advertising to the "Public"Every home seller likes to be assured... Read More

Inspecting Your New Home - 17 Areas You Must Inspect Before Taking Possession

Congratulations! You've made your decision; you've chosen your new home... Read More

Stopping Home Foreclosure with Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy Will Stop Your Sale - At Least For Now... Read More