Property Abroad
TEXT GRAHAM NORWOOD
PHOTO HELEN CATHACART / REX / AMY / DEREK HAIRON
News
POSTCODE: 007
Are you hunting for a gorgeous Italian hideaway this summer? George Clooney owns a multi-million pound villa close to Lake Garda but for the next few weeks you should also look out for a dinner-jacketed Daniel Craig in his alter ego’s famous Aston Martin. The latest Bond flick, Quantum of Solace, is now being shot at a string of locations around the Italian Lakes and local estate agents are cock-a-hoop. “Being in the opening shot of a Bond film will be a great advert for the place,” says Sarah Ferrara from Garda Homes. The last Bond movie, Casino Royale, did wonders for the property market in Montenegro, so expect soaring interest in Italian villas and apartments when the new movie comes out around the world in the early autumn.
TRÈS BIEN TRAM
The lovely French city of Nice is back on track — tram track, that is. It has taken three years of digging and drilling but the new tram service opened earlier this summer and it is already carrying 60,000 passengers a day for a flat fare of 1. It has helped spruce up the popular financial and Old Town districts of Nice, and links them with northern suburbs that were previously hard to get to for tourists. Visitor numbers and demand for holiday homes in the coastal haven had been well down since 2005 because of the construction work (the tram goes through main shopping and market streets so, ironically, the city was harder to get around) but now it is predicted Nice will become the most popular French destination after Paris by 2012.
SMELL THE ROSES
If flowers are your thing, Jersey is the place to be this summer — and you might find it a little cheaper to snap up a dream Channel Islands holiday home, too. The island’s Battle of Flowers is a 100-year-old event where local growers put their begonias and fuschias on show on the streets of the main town, St Helier, in the weeks leading up to the traditional Battle Day parade on August 15. It marks the height of the tourist season on the island and usually prompts a spurt in house sales. Jersey is one of the most expensive locations in Europe and has complicated rules for buyers from the UK and European mainland. But the market there is slowing down — a year ago house price were rising 20% annually, but now the rate is just 3.2% and estate agents across the island say sellers are willing to do deals with potential buyers.
MORE FOR MURCIA
Britons, it seems, are mesmerised by Murcia. Figures from the Spanish government show the region has enjoyed a big above-average rise in visitors — passengers are up 23% on last year at the local San Javier airport and there’s a 20% boost in cruise liners calling at lovely Cartagena. And no fewer than 20% of properties sold in Murcia now go to foreigners, mostly from Britain. Meanwhile, data from the property sales website Kyero.com shows that although most of the Spanish housing market has been throwing a major wobbly, Murcia is doing well. In 2005 a typical Murcian home cost an average of 197,488, rising by a sustainable 4% to 203,568 in 2006 and 4% again last year to 211,250. Even so, the prices still make Murcia cheaper than most other Spanish tourist hot-spots, so get in quick if you want a bargain.
Over the Fence
For former Londoner Annabelle Waite, and her best mate Geneva-born Tessa Chaffey, there’s more to life in Lausanne than skiing and eating bread dipped in melted cheese
New Girl
Annabelle (left) and Tessa
on another skiing expedition
Switzerland – quiet, unexciting, uptight. That was what Annabelle Waite expected when she heard she was going spend part of her time working in Geneva. Two years on and she loves the place, her new friends and, perhaps most of all, the skiing.
“Before I came out everyone warned me I would be back in London within a couple of weeks, as the Swiss aren’t exactly renowned for a lust for life or great sense of humour. But how wrong could they be?” says Annabelle, 26.
Annabelle’s her first thought was to get a home in a ski resort but she quickly realised that the way to get the best of both worlds — snowsports in the winter and access to beautiful countryside and watersports in the summer — she should live in Lausanne, 30 miles north-east of Geneva.
“Lausanne’s young and vibrant on the shores of Lake Geneva. There are lots of students and, with new trendy bars, restaurants and clubs, you’re kept entertained most nights of the week. There are music and cinema nights throughout the summer and endless music festivals to attend, like those at Montreux, Nyon and Neuchâtel — all last several days and are in beautiful locations by the lake,” she explains.
Now Annabelle makes the most of what she calls the sportiest place in Europe. She’s met most of her friends through sports clubs based around Lake Geneva which make it easy for ex-pats or holiday home owners to hook up with like-minded people.
But what about the Swiss? Are they as, ahem, uncomplicated as she was led to believe? “The stereotypes are true – you see the typical Swiss chalets, the cows with bells, enjoy the extraordinary punctuality, witness the utter tidiness, those cheese fondues and the safety,” admits Annabelle. But what’s more, she loves it all.
Enjoying the alpine view
from the summit
“It’s incredibly refreshing coming here from London where everything has to be locked and bolted. I go round to my best friend Tessa’s house where she leaves her front door open all day so her dog can get in and out,” explains Annabelle, who is a business consultant.
“I’ll happily admit to missing London occasionally but it costs under £100 and takes just three hours to get there. I’d swap the London Underground for a trip around Lake Geneva any day,” she insists.
“Oh, and I get a larger pay packet here as less money is eaten up by tax, too”
Local
Tessa Chaffey describes the popular image of
Switzerland this way: “If you’re on a platform at a train station and your train is late, either your watch is not Swiss or your train is not Swiss.”
But Tessa, 28, a work colleague and near neighbour of Annabelle, insists that’s only one side of the Alpine country that the foreigners see. Live in somewhere like Lausanne and you quickly see the relaxed and charming place that is the real Switzerland.
“In Canton Vaud, the county that Lausanne is in, the mantra is, ‘quard heur Vaudois,’” says Tessa, referring to the light-hearted reputation that locals have for preferring a relaxed lifestyle over punctuality. She says you can even stretch the fifteen minutes of lateness which is normally allowed up to an hour if you explain you’ve been drinking the local white wine. “It’s a perfectly acceptable excuse if locals are late for a meeting during the wine tasting season,” she says.
Tessa, originally from Geneva, has lived in Lausanne for 10 years, in a house near Lake Geneva. One of her reasons for loving the place is its international flavour — it’s only 40 minutes from central Geneva, three hours from Milan and five hours from Paris.
“Lausanne contains a huge diversity of nationalities and, with the headquarters of international companies and sporting organisations, you get the opportunity to mix and match all sorts of events and people,” she says.
“The Swiss approach to enjoying simple things of life — nature pursuits, sports, locally grown wines and dried meats and cheeses — is something I haven’t seen elsewhere in Europe. Family and village life is very important. As younger generations migrate to cities, so the creation of friendships and sharing of culture become almost a mission,” says Tessa, a business operations manager at a property consultancy.
“It’s important to us to learn the names of the surrounding mountain ranges and the different winds that blow across the lakes. And the arguments as to whose wine growing regions and cheese fondues are best are incredibly important to the Swiss.”
Tessa recognises that at first contact, the Swiss may appear frosty and their lifestyle simplistic but she says that once you are accepted, “you can’t imagine a way of life or place to live that gives as much access to the world while still maintaining local communities and friendships”.
She says: “I’ve moved away from Switzerland and lived elsewhere, pushing myself to explore greater horizons and encounter some fantastic cultures. But I always find that when I fly over Lake Geneva, see the snow capped mountains and make out my first Milka cows — well then I know it’s really great to be home.”
Fresh start
We’ve scoured the European property pages to find you some of the best new-build bargains
JEWEL IN THE CROWN | BORGO JACOPONE NEAR PERUGIA, UMBRIA
FROM £87,000
This is the perfect combination of traditional Italian style matched with the modern comfort and convenience of new-build homes, situated on a hill in the town of Collazzone, Umbria.
Borgo Jacopone is a small village of new properties built with an old-fashioned feel – each home has wooden ceilings with exposed beams and tiles, terracotta floor tiles and external cladding in stone and plaster. It’s an hour and half from Pisa airport and just a short drive away from the unspoilt Italian towns of Perugia, Todi, Assisi and Spoleto. Buy an apartment in this scheme and you also have access to the village’s swimming pool, sauna, carparking and communal gardens.
Umbria is the new Tuscany for many people, but with fewer Britons and much better value for money when it comes to property. The region’s rolling countryside is covered with vines and olive, cypress, pine, oak and chestnut trees.
From Rightmove Overseas
0845 408 1875 | www.RIGHTMOVE.CO.UK
BINISSALEM | MALLORCA
£467,000
This mountainous area of what the locals call “natural” Mallorca has opened up since 2005, thanks to new motorways and improved rail services.
As a result, small, once cheap villages such as Llubi, Alaro and Santa Maria now have rising demand, rising prices and a busier feel to them. Estate agency Engel & Voelkers says 30% of British buyers on Mallorca want to live inland where you get more for your money than you would on the coast.
This newly built finca has four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a porch plus a roof terrace for mountain views. There are also extensive grounds, large enough for a keen holiday home owner to grow their own crops, or even build another home for guests or as an investment.
From Engel & Voelkers
0034 971 672 650 | WW.MALLORCASOUTHWEST.COM
SUNSET VILLAS | VILAMOURA, PORTUGAL
FROM £194,000
Sunset Villas is a complex of 130 one and two-bedroom new-build apartments and townhouses in a fantastic residential community set around the prestigious Vila Sol golf course.
The 27-hole course was designed by internationally famous golf expert Donald Steel and is based on the legendary Scottish links course at St Andrews. Other facilities include a tennis academy, spa and the five-star Vila Sol hotel, plus shops, bars and restaurants.
The properties, designed in a classic Mediterranean style, are already completed and ready for immediate occupation. Most of the Sunset Villas apartments have wide terraces and all of them have access to communal gardens that will, in the words of the selling agent, “offer a real sense of being part of the golf course”.
A two-bed townhouse with a generous 2,000 square feet of internal living space will cost you just £311,000 – and it’s only 20 minutes from Faro airport.
From Pure International
020 3031 2860 | www.PUREINTL.COM
VENICE | ITALY
£308,000
It’s known as Serenissima, Queen of the Adriatic, City of Water, City of Bridges and The City of Light. But to many Venice is simply the most beautiful city in the world – and a small piece of it could be yours.
This charming one-bedroom apartment set on the fourth floor of a 19th-century building – that’s new-build for Venice – is a short walk from the famous Campo San Bartolomeo. It is unusual for any sort of property to become available in this area, so this will find a buyer quickly.
Bright and sunlit, the apartment features a loft with high, beamed ceilings, and classic Venetian-sourced wood flooring. The flat is available with furniture and the bathroom features a skylight and shower cubicle.
But the real star is on the outside – the small terrace overlooks the canals, rooftops and bell-towers of the city.
From Prestige Property Group
01935 817188 | www.PRESTIGEPROPERTY.CO.UK
HOW TO BUY IN ITALY
Anyone buying here must first obtain a tax identification number (a codice fiscale) from the local town hall. In some places, this can be done online. Then the buying process begins.
When you find the home of your dreams you make an offer and if it is accepted you must pay a 10% deposit – then you are committed to buying.
Both parties then sign a legally binding contract (a compromesso di vendita) which outlines price, boundaries and completion date.
If you withdraw at any stage, you lose the deposit; if the seller withdraws the property from sale, they pay you double the value of the deposit.
On completion, seller and buyer sign a contract (rogito) in front of a notary, at which point the balance of the cost is paid.
Finally, you pay the fees. Set aside 15% of the purchase price to cover stamp duty, land registration tax, estate agent’s fees, lawyers’ bills and local taxes. If you buy a new-build home, you pay up to 20% VAT too.
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