Where to buy property abroad: country overview
International agency MoverDB has ranked the most popular places for investors to buy property abroad. The experts analysed home sale and purchase announcements in 150 countries to do this. The rating also shows which citizens of which countries are most interested in investing in foreign property.
Investors from the United States
In 2020, the wealth of US citizens increased by 40% and totalled USD 35 trillion. Many Americans have decided to put their accumulated capital to good use by buying property in other countries. For them, the main argument in favour of buying a home abroad was the opportunity to avoid problems with the IRS. In addition, when choosing a location and a property, investors pay attention to the nature, profitability of the investment, and cultural characteristics of the country. Properties in Italy and Brazil are popular with American buyers. As for purchases within the US, the most popular choices are homes in Florida and Texas.
Investors from other countries
Buyers from South America most often choose properties in Venezuela, while buyers from the Middle East and Central Asia look for homes in Turkey. Investors from Eastern and Southern Europe prefer properties in Greece and Germany, while those from Northern and Western Europe prefer properties in France. The British consider Nice and the French capital promising in terms of profitability and comfort. Older buyers, in particular, prefer these regions. At the same time, British investors are actively interested in the markets of 22 countries, including neighbouring countries and China. According to statistics, around 35,000 UK citizens buy property abroad each year.
Residents of Sweden are attracted to properties in the United States. And buyers from Estonia consider offers in Finland.
Attractive places to buy property abroad
The most popular among foreign investors is the property in Spain. The analysis shows that citizens from 34 countries looked at offers on this market. Spanish property attracted buyers mainly from Africa and Asia, as well as Lithuania, Poland and Latvia.
Statistics confirm Spain’s popularity:
– in 2022, foreigners bought 63050 properties here out of 717558 completed transactions;
– the share of investors from other countries was around 9%;
– the most popular locations were Alicante, the Balearic Islands and Malaga;
Spanish property sales fell in 2023, particularly in the Canary Islands, Madrid and La Rioja markets. However, house prices continue to rise, despite the fall in demand from foreign buyers.
One of the factors dampening interest in Spain is a new law that tightly regulates rents. As a result, foreign investors may find it difficult to rent out apartments in some regions of the country. Spain also has additional taxes for property owners.