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May 2009 Top of the Props: USA bouncing back

Posted by Catherine Deshayes on Friday, June 05, 2009

The USA has now reigned supreme on the TheMoveChannel.com's Top of the Props chart for three consecutive months. Last month, it was chased by Italy and Portugal, suggesting that investors are less willing to take risks on far flung destinations and instead want to put their money into tried and tested markets...

Our Top of the Props chart provides a monthly pop chart snapshot of the most popular countries on the site and last month, the USA triumphed, attracting the most interest from visitors to the site.

USA

Director of Mayfair International Realty Annette Reeve has said investors are attracted across the Atlantic because of the way the country is governed, the accessibility and the recent falls in price.

"People looking to make a house purchase on the other side of the Atlantic tend to trust the US market more than some of its Europe counterparts," said Ms Reeve.

She added that British investors were currently very keen on the States due to price falls as they felt like they were buying at the bottom of the market.

Those who are hoping to cash in on the USA's booming foreclosure market could be in luck - the National Delinquency Survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) shows that foreclosure activity was at an all time high in the first quarter of 2009.

The survey shows the delinquency rate, which excludes homes in the foreclosure process, hit 9.12 per cent in the first three months of 2009 compared with 7.88 per cent in the last quarter of 2008.

Investors should take a long term view though - the MBA said in a statement that it does not expect any recovery in the property market until at least the end of 2010 and probably it will be 2011 before things turn around.

Earlier this year, property investment magazine Jet-to-Let placed the US third in a list of favoured property investment destinations.

Some US agents are aiming to improve cross-Atlantic relations and attract more British buyers to the states with an affiliation with a British agent.

One such example is Florida-based estate agents RSVP Associates who have affiliated with British agents Savills in a bid to boost sales of its Sarasota-Bradenton, Florida luxury properties.

Albert Horrigan, Chief Executive for RSVP, said, "The name carries a lot of weight over there, and it's really helped us, as when prospective British buyers come here to visit and see the Savills name, they know they are in good hands."

Dan Johnson, Director of TheMoveChannel.com said, "Alongside the downturn in housing markets all over the world, the more traditional luxury hotspots for British buyers, such as Dubai and the Mediterranean, have lost some of their appeal.

"As a result, an increasing number of British citizens are investing in American destinations such as Florida," he added.

Florida is seeing some positive signs too - Miami's property market is improving because a lot of lower-paid workers are able to take advantage of new Government schemes to help them get on the housing ladder.

Direct flights from many UK airports also help to keep Miami popular with British buyers.

Italy

With the beautiful Dolomites mountain range up for United Nations World Heritage Status, a spotlight has been shone on investing in this part of northern Italy.

The Trentino-Alto Adige region, which borders Switzerland and Austria and nestles amidst the Alps and the Dolomites, could be an ideal investment spot. It boasts stunning scenery, skiing, excellent trekking and horse riding and tourism now vies with agriculture and wine as mainstays of the economy.

It also has the second lowest population density in Italy so you won't be fighting your way through the crowds to get to the slopes.

Flying to Italy has been revolutionized by budget airlines, so wherever you choose to invest, your property will be readily accessible.

Austrian investors are also expected to show new interest in Italy with news that a new, faster rail link is to be built between Italy and Austria under the Brenner Pass.

Slated for completion around 2017, the new link will cut the present 3.5-hour train journey time between Zurich and Milan by an hour.

Other movers and shakers

Portugal had to be content with third place in May's Top of the Props chart, a drop from second in April. France nabbed fourth place, chased by Cyprus in fifth- which enjoyed a climb of nine places to make it into the top ten. The glitzy UAE took a rather unglamorous sixth place.

Turkey took lucky number seven whilst Spain took eighth - a drop of two places from April. Rounding off the chart were all the B's - Brazil and Bulgaria took the ninth and tenth spots in May's Top of the Props chart.

May's Top of the Props chart

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Overall Enquiry Volume for May 2009
Rank	Country	Share	Change	Comment
1	USA	9.53	Non-mover	1 month in top spot
2	Italy	7.41	Up 1
3	Portugal	6.92	Down 1
4	France	6.81	Up 3
5	Cyprus	6.67	Up 9	New to top 10!
6	UAE	5.89	Down 2
7	Turkey	5.47	Down 2
8	Spain	4.62	Down 2
9	Brazil	3.74	Up 6	New to top 10!
10	Bulgaria	3.18	Up 2	New to top 10!
11	Egypt	1.94	Down 3
12	Thailand	1.87	Down 3
13	Greece	1.73	Down 3
14	Dominican Republic	1.45	Down 3
15	Australia	1.38	Up 9
16	Barbados	1.2	Up 2
17	Morocco	1.13	Up 2
18	Sweden	0.81	Up 10
19	Malaysia	0.81	Up 16	Highest climber
20	Germany	0.74	Down 3
21	Panama	0.64	Up 15
22	India	0.64	Down 6
23	Kenya	0.56		Highest New Entry
24	Croatia	0.46	Up 2
25	Canada	0.42	Down 12
26	Albania	0.32	Up 12
27	Hungary	0.32		New Entry
28	Sri Lanka	0.28	Up 12
29	Romania	0.28	Up 5
30	New Zealand	0.28	Down 10
31	Netherlands	0.28		New Entry
32	Trinidad & Tobago	0.28		New Entry
33	Cape Verde	0.21	Down 1
34	Qatar	0.18	Up 11
35	Philippines	0.18	Down 13
36	Gibraltar	0.18		New Entry
37	Bahrain	0.18	Up 7
38	Bahamas	0.14	Down 17	Biggest faller
39	Mexico	0.14		New Entry
40	Malta	0.14		New Entry

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