Welcome pilliam

I’m not a big fan of Egypt, but with your budget it’s certainly a contender. I could be wrong, but I suspect capital appreciation won’t be great in Egypt. However, if you are looking upon a possible investment as a more exciting way of providing an income with possibility of capital appreciation then this could be a good choice for you. Egypt is reasonably accessible too, so this investment could provide you with a lifestyle option too.

If you mention Egypt to your mother I’m sure she will mention terrorism and perhaps the problems that tourists have had when leaving tourist conurbations (armed escort etc.) Forewarned is forearmed. Bombings do take place from time to time in the tourist areas. Clearly that isn’t a good thing, but its amazing how robust tourism has been in light of this.

One final note of caution with Egypt. There has been a lot of building going on in recent years and I suspect there is the danger of oversupply. If this proves to be the case then you may find your property depreciates considerably in value.

Germany. You mentioned Berlin. While it can be done in Berlin, Dresden might be worth thinking about if you want a tourist rental that will rent well and allow you time there too. Most people think of Dresden as the place flattened in World War 2. So much has changed since then and much of the old Dresden has been built as it was before. (Just look at the tourist sites for it – you wouldn’t know it was flattened 60 years ago.) Dresden is very popular with both German and foreign tourists. It is also a two hour drive (foot down) from both Berlin and Prague.

What David Howe said on short term rentals is certainly relevant. Finding a good team on the ground is key and there’s no guarantee you will succeed on that front even with due diligence. (David’s no mug and he’s been stung on this front.)

I’ve placed my thoughts on where to place your money on the “EUR 60,000 to invest” thread.

Post above appeared twice, just deleting the 2nd one!

sweden..although i have had great times there. the only issue i can raise here is that it was very expensive there, on holiday, and that was 20 years ago!

france..it is a big favorite with the brits, the weather can be an issue..the majority on british holiday makers that are active in the rental market generally look for guaranteed sun. its mostly popular with the wine and dine set, who buy for personal use..also its eurozone, which is very expensive for a brit buyer right now..

germany..i do have some tenanted units in berlin, which come with a guaranteed income, although i am not sure your budget will get you on board.

regards

rossantony

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hi soupdragon...

the last bomb in egypt was in sharm el sheik 3 years ago now, so not happening all the time! since then turkey (marmaris) london, spain, have all been hit...Egypt was hit because it is an ally of the west, and since the response by the egyptian government has been gladly received. I feel safer here than back home in wiltshire, we have an almost 0% crime rate out here, wheras back home hoodies control the streets ( daily mail quote )

I live here, and do not need an armed escort to travel freely. They only issue armed escorts to tourist coaches travelling through the interior to Luxor and Aswan. These armed escorts are designed to be deterrent in their nature, and are a good thing. dont imagine a jeep full of rozzers armed to the teeth either, its usually a sleepy, smiley copper, with a sidearm.

the presidents son, gamal mubarek is a vey enlightened individual, i wonder if you have watched the bbc's coverage of the world economic forum held last week in sharm? he had tony blair smiling from ear to ear..(sic)

we have 7% growth per annum GDP, and falling unemployment, massive FDI, a a government commited to reform.

there has been considerable growth but egypt can afford it, as it is mostly desert. here in hurghada, the cost of property is rising continually, helped by FDI from foreign buyers, but mainly due to wider economic issues, like the cost of oil, and other raw materials, is pushing up prices, so a lot of buyers are egyptians. We are very popular with Cairo middle class, as well as gulf arabs who come to Hurghada for their summer by the sea holidays. There is always the danger of over supply and there are some areas of egypt, and my region, hurghada, where one should not buy, but there are also these limited custom built resorts, which are proving so far to be an excellent purchase for investors

Like Romania, Egypt is starting from the first rung of the ladder. Like David, I also have some very precise figures, I would be interested to see how egypt and romania compare!

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Rossantony: I don’t wish to dwell on the bombings as my point was that tourism wasn’t hit badly by it. I have however pasted two links beneath that provide information on bombings in recent times - Dahab in 2006 being the latest.

Terrorism in Egypt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
History of terrorism against tourists in Egypt, 1992 to present. (Surprisingly doesn’t mention Dahab 2006.)

Its certainly encouraging that the bombings are taking place less frequently.

How have prices for existing property (not off-plan) faired in your part of Egypt over the last 2 or 3 years?

I’m perhaps being pedantic, but when you say the crime rate is almost 0% I think you actually mean that there is very little recorded crime. I’m always sceptical with crime figures, no matter what area they are for. There are many crimes that the victims are too embarrassed or scared to report. Some authorities are more lax about recording crimes and what counts as crime varies from place to place.

i always forget dahab as well..it was 2005 in sharm, dahab was hit as it is a popular spot for israeli tourists, especially the youth who have just come out of national service. but as we both seen, nothing since then, primarily down to the action of the government here, taking a long view on politics here in egypt noone forgets that president sadat was killed because he made peace with israel. my point is that egypt has suffered because it has taken the path of peace and reconcilliation, and that the majority of people here are pro western and it feels safe, on a day to day basis. i hope i am not wrong in this assumption.

in the past 3 years, the price of finished property has risen dramatically. in my block of apartments, 2 bed apartments were sold for £40k, and are now fetching £150k (front line, private beach, huge pool, spa, central)

i see your point on crime figures, i never thought of that. but honestly i have never seen or heard of any petty crime againts tourists since i have been here. of course we get crimes of passion, and the odd nutter losing it, but here street criminality is not accepted. i dont know what % of egyptian men are rozzers, or forces, or security guards but you get the feeling that every family has a couple of each!

what egyptians suffer from is business corruption rather than street crime.

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ross@experience-international.co.uk
http://www.experience-international.com
skype:rossantony1971 tel:002 0168597844