Over the past few months a select group of developers have come together to showcase a broad palette of real estate options under a unified banner - “Choose Belize”.  The group has been convened by Coldwell Banker Belize and we can say, in all good conscience, that this group represents the very best Belize has to offer.

That is not a glib marketing statement - these market leaders represent the top properties and investment opportunities across the country as a whole at a time when it’s more important than ever to focus on value.

Coldwell Banker Belize has done the homework on the ground, leveraged their first hand experience and networks, triangulated their offerings against “four pillars of international real estate success” and enlisted the help of our database to track down the really great deals in this buyer’s market.  Then, they designed a three day property tour to showcase what they had found.

Look out for the Recommended Real Estate Tour Member badge

We’ve added a “badge” to the listing page of developments in our database being showcased on the Choose Belize Tour.   Here is a selection of what you’ll see on tour:

• Brahma Blue
• Caye Winds
• Cocoplum
• Grand Baymen
• Orchid Bay
• Los Porticos
• The Villas at Cocoplum
• and more…

Full details on the property tour.

No question, a real estate tour, where you get to see a choice of property options, selected by in-country experts, is a prudent way to make the decision if Belize is right for you.  Learn more.

The global financial crisis and its impact on international real estate is still discussion topic #1 among investment analysts, real estate agents and developers in Central America. Everyone agrees that 2009 was a difficult year. The tricky part is that the arguments being presented paint quite different scenarios for the future.

On the one hand, large-scale real estate projects, especially if heavily leveraged, have proven vulnerable. The suspension of the St. Regis project in Costa Rica in the wake of the Lehman Brothers collapse was the first high profile example. Other project closures and suspensions followed in 2009 including the Rosewood at Costa Carmel (Costa Rica), La Punta Papagayo (Costa Rica), Marea Alta (Nicaragua), and Orchid Residences (Panama City), to name a few.

But perhaps more important than the direct impact of the international financial crisis, the property pessimists argue, was the indirect effect of tighter lines of credit in North America - the main source of buyers for international real estate in the region. No longer is the market being carried by North American buyers flush with equity and easy credit. It’s easy to point to low sales volumes and falling prices to make this point.

Any bright spots? Counter trends?

One can overdo the gloom.  The optimists point to sticker prices on the downside in Central America relative to more mature markets. The relatively low levels of lender mediated activity across the region meant that the market did not suffer the kind of foreclosure crisis we’ve become used to reading about in the US.

Second, international real estate markets, and Central America included, are increasingly being seen as tax-friendly, safe haven investments. The kind of places investors and retirees seek to shield themselves from the US financial system.

Added to this, is a new wave of lifestyle buyers looking for areas where the real estate is cheaper and, crucially, the cost of living more affordable. We included examples of developers, such as Montecristo Beach & Golf Resort in Nicaragua, Grand Baymen in Belize and Valle Escondido in Panama, successfully marketing to these buyers in a recent article for the International Property Journal.

The upshot?

The impact of the financial crisis has been mixed both within and between countries. Developers are having to adapt quickly to a new market.  Those that understand the mindset of the post-crisis real estate investor are best placed to succeed.

Investment activity is trending towards well-planned developments with good locations, quality products and a master plan that delivers against end-user requirements. Pre-construction offerings in weak locations face an uphill battle.

The property pessimists are right that the boom years are over for international real estate in Central America.  It’s a different market now, with buyers firmly in the driving seat. Welcome to the ‘new normal’.

One of the most telling aspects of the new normal is the retreat of the speculator buying for quick re-sale profit. The speculator has been replaced by a new type of international real estate investor - a ‘post crisis’ investor - with a different mindset and goals.

14 characteristics of the post crisis international real estate investor:

• More informed and will demand better service from the industry
• Will not make decisions based on thin slices of information but will demand openness and transparency
• Skeptical of promises made by developers on their websites and brochures
• Wary of pre-construction properties, preferring to purchase completed real estate with amenities they can enjoy right now.
• Will want to understanding the financial health of the community before they invest
• Will expect substantial discounts on the market highs of 2007
• Will haggle, even when it comes to high-end properties
• Will be drawn to real estate that is a bit low key
• Interested in properties that generate revenue in the short term.
• Motivated by lifestyle factors (not just financial gain)
• Focused on regions with a low cost of living, good health care and safe streets
• Will avoid areas with over-supply risk and copy-cat developments
• Will seek safe haven investments and tax friendly environments
• Interested in contributions to larger concerns such as environmental preservation, the local community and sustainable approaches to building, water, and energy

With change comes opportunity

In order to succeed in 2010, developers will need to innovate their products and their marketing to embrace the mindset of the post crisis real estate investor. Those that do will earn their way out of trouble. Those that don’t will suffer.

Tourism and retirement as a business model for international real estate in Central America is not broken, it has just shifted.  Yes the over-leveraging of the North American and European consumer has come to a halt and the debt in finances will have lingering consequences. But as retirees and investors take stock of their situations and consider their options, many will still be looking for a more affordable life overseas and safe, tax-friendly places to plant their money.

We’re looking forward to a healthier, more sustainable market for international real estate in Central America. One that is more open and transparent and less reliant on the rampant speculation of the past … 

…but it may take all of 2010 to get there.

2009 has been a tough year for real estate sellers in Central America. Sales volumes are down, buyers are more risk adverse and financing is tight. The one bright spot is a growing group of ‘lifestyle buyers’ looking for cheap properties and a low cost of living. Many see Central America as an affordable safe haven and a way to side-step the worst effects of an economic downturn at home.

As it’s cheap real estate these lifestyle buyers are after, we thought we’d offer up a resource that highlights the lowest priced real estate in the four countries we follow: Belize, Costa Rica, Panama and Nicaragua.

Not surprisingly, the most affordable way into the market is by purchasing a lot or homesite. Our analysis looks at master planned communities targeting the international buyer. This means that a lot purchase comes with access to community amenities. Swimming pools, clubhouses and fitness centers are the most common. In some of the larger, resort-style communities, you’ll find golf courses, restaurants, shopping centers, racket courts, hotels and marinas.

So what’s the starting price point for lots in master planned communities?

We’ve built a ranking table to answer this question, giving the results in overall price and price/sqft for 2009. The table complements the earlier PriceRank we prepared for single family houses and condos. The columns are sortable letting you organize the list in different ways. If you want to know what amenities are offered by each real estate development, click through to the individual page for the answer. You’ll also see if the amenities are planned or completed.

A quick glance at the table shows two broad themes:

• Real estate developments located in Nicaragua tend to rank lower (ie are lower in price) than those in Costa Rica, with Belize and Panama falling somewhere in between. This pattern mirrors the level of maturity of the real estate markets - from emerging (Nicaragua) to middle markets (Panama and Belize) to the most mature (Costa Rica). We’ve analysed this before by plotting ‘development curves’ to show the relative levels of each of the markets.
• Generally speaking ocean property has a premium over other locations. Master planned communities on the ocean rank higher for the most part than lake/river and pastoral locations.

We’re continuing to sort through the data we collect, looking for the best ways to present and dig out the facts. We’d love to have your ideas and suggestions. They’ll be more price rankings to follow. We also plan a “Master Plan Completion Index” to give a sense of how far along real estate developments are with their master plan - a piece of information that savvy real estate investors should follow with care.

Stay tuned by subscribing to updates.

This post is the fourth in a series that explains how the real estate market works in Central America. Here we look at why it’s hard to get reliable market comps (and what to do about it).

Market comparables (or ‘comps’) are the starting point for a buyer looking to cut a deal in any market. By looking at the price of similar properties, in similar condition, in similar locations a buyer can determine what’s good value and what’s not.

Trouble is, unlike in the US, real estate agents in Central America can’t draw on an industry database - such as the Multiple Listing Service - to bring out comps.

The other obstacle to good comps is how property gets recorded at the Public Registry. In the markets we cover it’s common for the recorded sales price to bear little resemblance to the actual sales price paid to the seller.

There are reasons for this and old precedents, but the upshot for buyers, sellers and agents is that it’s practically impossible to get any base data on sales.

Will “revealing” this feature of the market change the course of the real estate industry in Central America? No, probably not. But it’s important for buyers to understand how things work and to know that they have to rely on old-fashioned legwork and good contacts to get the information they need.

Ferreting out the real estate comps in Central America

We plan to write more on the subject of getting hold of comps in the region. (After all, it’s one of the reasons we set up this site and database of master planned communities.) But here are some steps to start with:

• Begin your research on the Internet. You won’t be able to find out how long properties have been on the market, or actual sales prices, but you will find asking prices. These don’t provide a perfect valuation - they often differ from actual sales prices - but in a world of imperfect data, asking prices are a good place to start.
• Speak with local real estate agents and market experts. The ones with a close ear to the ground will be able to outline actual sales price points for different property categories (e.g beachfront lots in San Juan del Sur or Ocean view condos in Panama City).
• Seek out the best-researched international real estate blogs and news websites for insight into how the market is doing.
• Head on over to Global Property Guide for some great data on global markets.
• Use this site if you’re interested in purchasing in a master planned community. We deliver the asking price comps. Our pages show the price for different property types compared against the country and regional averages for our sample (see example). We’ve also simplified the data into a 2009 PriceRank for international real estate developments in Central America.

The point is to let the data drive your investment strategy. Only then will you be able to ferret out the best value real estate in the region.

What to know more about how real estate works in Central America?

Here are the other posts in the series:

• What you need to know about how real estate works in Central America (and why you should know)
• Why are you left with that niggling feeling: “Have I seen all there is to see”?
• Are brokers really playing hard-to-get with their listings?

Imagine this …

You’re searching online for an ocean view condo in Panama and you come across a listing that takes your fancy. It looks like there’s a nice open floor plan and exactly the kind of kitchen you’re looking for. And maybe that’s a surf break you can see out of the bedroom window. Looking good… So you scan the listing to find out where the property is located.

Now here’s where the information gets scant. In fact, you can’t find any location information whatsoever. “Why?” you wonder in frustration, “Is the broker not giving me this crucial detail?”

Is this a real listing?

Most likely you’re looking at an ‘open listing’ or a ‘pocket listing’. As it is ‘open’ any agency can list the property. But only the agency that introduces the buyer earns the commission.

You can see why it makes sense in this scenario for the real estate broker to keep the listing information vague – they want to reduce the chance of competing brokers finding the owner and taking the listing for themselves. For some properties, brokers and agents may take this one step further and not have any information on the listing on their website.

Open listings and inventory hoarding by brokers is common in the region. It’s a factor of not having an MLS system.

What about exclusive listings?

There are exclusive listings in some markets, (they seem to be more common in Belize for example), But again, in the absence of an MLS, exclusives don’t always work very well.

This is because everyone, with the exception of the listing agency, will view the exclusive listing as one that does not pay a full commission, as the listing agency will expect a commission share.

If you’re a broker, why show an exclusive property for a shared commission when you’ve got open listings on your books that pay a full commission? (In US industry terms a full commission comprises both the “listing” side and the “selling” side of the commission, known as “both sides of the transaction”).

Towards better location information

Things are slowly getting better as the online marketplace evolves. On this site for example we plot each master planned community on a Google Map. We also provide an estimate of driving time to the nearest international airport and the nearest town with a decent sized grocery store.  (Here’s an example).  It’s our Central American version of the DriveScore.

Of course we’re still a long way away from arming consumers with the kind of data they have in the US. But the data supply is increasing and transparency is starting to improve.

What to know more about how real estate works in Central America?

Here are other posts in the series:

• What you need to know about how real estate works in Central America (and why you should know)
• Why are you left with that niggling feeling: “Have I seen all there is to see”?
• Why is it hard to get reliable market comps (and what to do about it)

As a buyer in any market, it’s natural that you want to choose between all properties that fit your criteria. Because only then can you make an informed decision.

In the US, this process is relatively simple:

Let’s say you’re looking for a three bedroom house in Phoenix, for under $325,000 with a garage that’s located close to a good school and has a DriveScore of 70 or better. Well, with a few clicks, your agent pulls together a list of properties that fit these criteria. You review the list, maybe check out the Street View for a few of them, whittle the numbers down and go on a viewing.

While you’re out on the property tour you whip out your iPhone, compare the Zestimate against the asking price and organize your viewing experience with the Better Homes and Garden app.

That’s the beauty of the Multiple Listing System and all the IDX websites, apps and widgets that have been built around it.

The MLS is basically a central database of properties. When a seller lists their property with an agency it gets added to this database that in turn gives buyers the most comprehensive set of listings in their area of focus.

You’ve probably guessed where we’re going with this …

Welcome to a world without an MLS

Despite some valiant attempts over the years to start up local MLS-type systems, there’s still no MLS in Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua or Belize.

This means that when a seller lists a property with an agency, it doesn’t get added to a central database that other agencies can access, and buyers can’t sift through a full list of property for sale. (Oh and forget comparables, but that’s a topic for another post.)

So if a buyer really wants to see all that is available, they have to go on a property tour with every agent in the area they are interested in. There may be some local market experts or buyers agents who can short cut this process a little, but for the most part it’s a pretty daunting endeavor.

Making things simple

Our aim at Reveal Real Estate is to help simplify things. Of course we can’t claim to be a fully-fledged MLS. But we’re trying to build the next best thing by providing one place where buyers and sellers can access information on real estate developments, master planned communities and condo projects.

Our goal is transparency – to find every real estate development in the region and put this information online.

What to know more about how real estate works in Central America?

Here are the other posts in the series:

• What you need to know about how real estate works in Central America (and why you need to know)
• Are brokers really playing hard-to-get with their listings?
• Why is it hard to get reliable market comps (and what to do about it)

Some of this is Real Estate 101, applicable to any real estate market. But when you look closely at how the market operates in Central America, you’ll notice important differences compared with the US.

We’re speaking from experience

When I was first researching the real estate market on Nicaragua’s Pacific coast in 2002, I went on property viewing after property viewing with a host of different real estate agents.  We covered an enormous amount of ground, spending long days touring up and down the coastline.  But despite this effort I was still left with that niggling feeling: “Have I seen all there is?“.

I spent hours on the Internet trying to figure out whether there were properties that fitted my criteria that I hadn’t seen.  Instead of finding re-assurance online, this process confused me even more.

Many of the listings I stumbled across online had vague descriptions and almost no location information.  It was almost as if brokers didn’t want me to see what they had on offer.

Fast forward to today and I know why brokers seem to play hard to get with their listings in Central America and why it’s difficult to get a comprehensive picture of the market.

(As it turns out, I’m happy with the investments that I made.  But had I known more about how the market for real estate in Nicaragua works, the process would have been less fraught and I would have felt more confident about the decisions I was making.)

So how do things work?

We’re writing a series of posts explaining the intricacies of the real estate market in Panama, Costa Rica, Belize and Nicaragua.

We want to go beyond the usual insider tips for international real estate in Central America or the questions to ask the real estate developer. The posts focus on the process of real estate, the mechanisms of the market, the detail of how things work in practice, and what this means to buyers interested in these markets.

It’s the kind of information we wish we’d had when we were researching the market.

We’ll also present how Reveal Real Estate fits into the picture; how we fill some of the information gaps and help buyers make more informed decisions. We’re part of the market and have a passion for making things work better.

Here are the first posts in the series:

• Why are you left with that niggling feeling: “Have I seen all there is to see”?
• Are brokers really playing hard-to-get with their listings?
• Why is it hard to get reliable market comps (and what to do about it)

Forbes pulled together the list of top 10 retirement havens using a range of criteria from “safety to retiree-friendly visa requirements to decent medical care.”  Quality of life, cost of living and climate for retirees were also factored in.

Sam Taliaferro picked this up over at his Panama Investor Blog where he listed some of the positives for Panama:

“Positives: Panama has almost everything: year-round sun, low taxes, massive discounts for seniors, first-world amenities, quality private hospitals, bird-filled rainforests, a dollar economy and easy flights from the U.S. Panama City is considered safest of all Central American cities, with worldly buzz because of the canal, and a World Heritage Site.”

Of course each country has “assets and liabilities” and much depends on what kind of lifestyle you are looking for.  So the key to a successful retirement as an ex-pat?   Know yourself and do your homework.

Read the full analysis at Forbes.

This first post in the series looks at the ‘Tola Riveria and Popoyo’ area in Nicaragua.  We’ve answered 5 questions designed to give you a quick market snapshot of the area.  You’ll find that the post dives straight into the real estate nitty gritty, so if you first want to step back and read a description of the area, then click here. Onto the questions:

1. What real estate is available in the Tola Rivieria & Popoyo area of Nicaragua?

We follow 12 master planned communities in the area. The projects range from large destination style resorts with a host of amenities, ambitious hotel & spa resorts to smaller-scale surf-focused projects and subdivisions offering serviced lots.

The bulk of real estate on offer in the area is serviced lots (or homesites), with buyers choosing between ocean view, golf front, ‘tropical view’ and beach front positions. The larger projects, and those more advanced in their plans (see question 3 on amenities) also offer condos and single family houses for sale.

2. How much does property cost in Tola Riviera and Popoyo?

The table below shows the median price for condos and lots in the main real estate developments.  If you want to see more detail then click through to each development where the prices are split out into additional categories (e.g. beachfront, ocean view, long ocean view and so on).

* Average of the median asking price for each real estate development. Data collected July to September 2009.

3. What amenities are the developers offering?

Rancho Santana, The Village at Aqua and Hacienda Iguana are the furthest ahead in the completion of their masterplan. Some of the smaller subdivisions that do not plan on-site amenities, intend to make use of memberships offered by the other projects in the area (e.g. corporate membership to the Iguana Golf Club).

4. How do prices compare with Nicaragua as a whole and the average for Reveal Real Estate?

For condos and single family homes, median prices in Tola Riviera are similar to the medians for Nicaragua as a whole, but well below the Reveal Real Estate average (which also takes into account property in Costa Rica, Belize and Panama).

For serviced lots the picture is more varied although for the most part the median for Tola is still below country and regional averages. The full chart can be seen on the Tola Riviera page (scroll down and click on the tabs)

5. What’s the year-on-year price trend?

The table below shows the year on year price trend for the area compared with other purchasing destinations in Belize, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama.

*Data looks at condos and townhouses for sale in international real estate developments

The developments that we follow in Tola showed an overall drop in asking price of 10% year-on-year to September 2009. Although higher than the other property markets we track, the falls are less than those we’ve become used to seeing in the US and other developed world markets.  For more analysis on the trends in the table, check out an article we wrote over at International Property Journal.

That’s it for a quick market snapshot of master planned communities in Tola Riviera & Popoyo. Any questions or comments, please reply below.  We’d love to have your feedback.  And stay tuned for the next one.

Sometimes this can give you the feeling that you’ve arrived at a secret paradise, miles from anywhere, when the bumpy road suddenly opens out to sweeping vistas, lush gardens and well appointed homes. Ahh, you think, no one except other discriminating investors like myself will take the time to reach and assess this opportunity so I’m guaranteed exclusivity, privacy and maybe somewhat of a discount due to the access.  But, more often, the bumpy trip can leave you tired and grumpy and heaven help a developer who doesn’t then have a cool drink on hand and something worthwhile to show you as an investment opportunity.

It’s important to be prepared before you set out - to know exactly where the project is located, how long it will take to get there and on what sort of road. So on RevealRealEstate we include a location map for each real estate development and answer these 3 questions:

• Is the road paved from the nearest international airport? (if it’s not paved, we’ve estimated the amount of driving time on unpaved sections)
• What is the total driving time from the international airport?
• How long does it take to drive to the closest town with a decent sized grocery store?

This data is useful on a project-by-project basis when planning a trip, doing a price comparison, or for tossing up real estate options; but there’s also something to learn from aggregating the data and analyzing by country.  So here’s the picture for Panama, Costa Rica and Nicaragua.

Is the road paved from the nearest international airport?

In broad terms the data reflects the level of investment each county has made on its infrastructure and the remoteness of the main property purchasing destinations.  Panama leads the field when it comes to paving.  You can drive in comfort, on paved roads, to most of the real estate developments featured on RevealRealEstate, including of course all the condo projects in Panama City.

Costa Rica follows close behind with over 70% of the developments having paved access. We haven’t yet seen the new section of road between Quepos and Dominical, but this should improve driving comfort further.

In Nicaragua be prepared for a bumpier ride.  Only 20% of the projects on RevealRealEstate have paved access.  But if the planned coastal road from the border with Costa Rica heading northwards following the ribbon of development ever gets off the drawing board, this would change the picture quite dramatically.

How long does it take to drive to the airport and the nearest grocery store?

The pattern between the countries is similar when it comes to driving times.  Real estate developments in Panama and Costa Rica have a shorter driving time on average to the airport and to a decent sized grovery store than those located in Nicaragua.

If you need to pop out to a grocery store with a decent range of items you’re looking at a 9 minute drive, on average, in Costa Rica.  In Nicaragua, your grocery run is 23 minutes on average.    Of course this varies considerably for each real estate development. Check each development page for individual driving times.

What about Belize real estate?

We’ve included the Belize data separately as it’s not directly comparable to the other countries.  The terrain is quite different, particularly on the coast, and visitors mostly get about by taking short internal flights and then getting in a golf cart for the final stretch.  Many of the projects on Ambergris Caye for example do not have paved access but in practice all this means is a short golf cart ride on a sand road.

Infrastructure is steadily improving in Belize.  The paving of the 16 mile road along the Placencia Peninsula is underway with the section from Maya Beach to Placencia Village already completed.  So the only bumping we’ll do on our next trip to Placencia will be over speed-bumps.

So what does all of this mean for pricing?  Does paved access lessen a development’s exclusivity?  Does a long driving time from the airport or grocery store mean that prices will be lower for comparable real estate? We’ll be looking at this in our second post on accessibility.  Stay tuned.

Still the global context is important for regional buyers and sellers, so we’ve summarized the results below.  The full data and analysis from Knight Frank can be seen here.

• House prices increased in almost half of the locations reporting prices for the second quarter of 2009.
• The picture has improved from the first quarter where double-digit falls were seen in a number of locations. In the second quarter, price falls did not exceed 10% in any country.
• Dubai recorded the largest year-on-year falls at 47%, but prices seem to be falling at a slower rate now - losing 7.5% from the first quarter 2009
• In Israel house prices increased 12.5% over a 12 month period, making it the top performer in the sample.
• The report concludes that although there are signs that the prices are beginning to bottom out, the market is still “fragile and patchy.”

We’re excited to be hosting Carnival of Real Estate #164 this week from Nicaragua.

In our work in Central America we regularly draw inspiration from the US RE.net on online marketing and ways to equip buyers and sellers with tools to help them make better decisions. This makes us avid followers of the Carnival. We use it as a quick way into the best real estate posts each week.

Not a huge list of submissions this time round, but still a few nice articles in the mix. We’ve picked out the three we liked most and added in a runner up.

The top three real estate posts:

We enjoyed reading Jim’s advice to Rent Forever, Don’t Buy A Home posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity. It’s always refreshing to see an article ”tackle the cornerstones of well-accepted advice.” You may not agree with everything he’s saying. But maybe that’s the point.

We’re always exploring rankings, rating and lists in our work to help buyers get to grips with the local market. So we appreciated Whitney Tyner’s Trick-or-Treat Housing Index: Top 5 Seattle Neighborhoods posted at Zillow Blog which lists neighborhoods that “provide the most candy, with the least walking, and minimum safety risks”. Perhaps we need to inject some more fun into our own rankings?

Also in our top three is a post from Cindy Jones on Short Sale Train Wreck Coming to Northern Virginia Soon posted at VA Real Estate Talk. She may be right about conflicts between agents as a result of the way some short sales are being handled.

And the runner up:

We’ll close this Carnival with a runner up prize to Saundra Washington for her 12 Terrific Topics for Your Real Estate Blog posted at Technology Tools for Real Estate. It seems that there can never be enough list posts helping real estate bloggers come up with new content day after day.

That concludes this edition of CORE. To participate next week please submit your best post using the carnival submission form.

We’ve added them below as a complement to the insider tips to real estate investing in Central America we published in April.

The advice from the AAIP is solid and you should certainly keep the tips front of mind when considering investing in real estate in Costa Rica, Panama, Belize or Nicaragua - the markets we cover on this site.

Here are the 5 tips from AAIP:

1. Independent lawyer

• No matter what anybody tells you, no matter how easy it all seems and no matter how lovely the agent seems, ALWAYS use an independent lawyer to represent you throughout the purchase of your property overseas.
• It is the lawyer’s job to protect you and inform you.
• You will need to pay the lawyer a fee – accept that as part of your purchase costs. This is not an area in which to keep costs down.
• The definition of ‘independent’ is that the lawyer represents you and only you.

2. Do the numbers

• Make sure you know your budget before you start looking at properties – this should include at least a provisional mortgage offer if you’re borrowing money.
• Don’t then be tempted to buy more properties than you can afford (particularly on off-plan properties) hoping to sell the extra properties before completion unless you fully understand the risks as well as the rewards (see point 5).
• If borrowing money, your repayments will stretch over several years, years in which lending criteria and borrowing costs may change. Discuss the long term repayment with a financial specialist before proceeding.

3. Beware exchange rate movements

• The rates do not need to move substantially to affect the value of your purchase. When you start looking, £100,000 may buy you a certain property – a 10% drop in the value of the £ against the Euro, for example, may then put that property out of your budget. If you’ve already signed contracts to buy, this could cause you a problem. Speak to specialists in this area and secure your rate of exchange early.
• The rate fluctuations will also affect the costs of mortgages (if you raise the mortgage overseas and earn your income at home). Again, speak to a foreign exchange specialist to highlight the risks and to take appropriate action.

4. Use professional agents and developers

• There are few, if any, guarantees when buying property, at home or overseas. Using an independent lawyer (see point 1) significantly reduces the risks you take on an overseas property purchase and employing a professional agent or buying from a professional developer will also help you.
• Ask lots of questions. 3 year old children are known for asking lots of questions (why? why? why?) and you should follow their lead when talking to agents about a purchase. Initially, focus questions on the company itself, not the properties for sale. Dig around for details on the founders of the company and the track record of the company. Ask for client testimonials (real ones) and make sure you find out in detail exactly what service they offer. Don’t just take their word for it – ask for details on their service in writing, preferably in the form of some type of ‘Terms of Business’.

5. Remember the reward : risk ratio

• If you are buying property overseas as an investment (as many people have done in recent years), you need to bear in mind that big returns may come with significant risks. Be careful to assess the possible downsides to an investment property as well as the enticing investment numbers that could be achieved if all goes to plan.

Take your time and follow these tips and there is no reason why you’ll be taking any more risk buying overseas than you do at home.

The 5 tips have been reposted from AAIP.  You can view the article on AAIPs website here.

There is no global standard yet for green building, but there are initiatives in the pipeline and plenty of guidance, webinars, TV shows and research reports on what constitutes a green approach to construction and development.

To build the 2009 GreenList we reviewed public disclosures made by real estate owners and developers against the following 5 criteria: Biodiversity, Energy Management, Green Building, Water & Waste Management and Social Responsibility & Giving Back.

Developments with a general environmental slogan (e.g. “eco-friendly”, “earth-friendly”, “eco-luxury”) that did not provide additional evidence of social and environmental action steps taken or planned were not included.

Like many green rankings, the list is imperfect. It captures commitment (and at worst, just good public relations) and not effectiveness. Also the list probably under-reports what is going on in the region as some developers may keep information private.

We’ll be improving the list over time.  But for now these real estate developers are laying down an environmental commitment, and we’re keen to recognize this.

Keeping track of the green pioneers

As more buyers actively seek to invest in a way that helps produce a healthy and livable world for all, how real estate developments perform on environmental and social issues will have a direct impact on their competitiveness and profitability.  They’ll be perfectly poised for future growth driven by buyers looking to live green and invest well.

Buyers, if you’re interested in buying green then have a look at these places.

The 2009 GreenList

Click on the table headers to sort them. You’ll find more information in the right hand sidebar of each development page by following the links in the table.

B=Biodiversity,  E=Energy Management, G=Green Building, W=Water & Waste Management and S=Social Responsibility & Giving Back.

More details on the 5 criteria:

• Biodiversity (for example re-forestation project; large dedicated green areas that will not be developed, accreditation as a private reserve)
• Energy management (use of renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, thermal energy)
• Green building (eco-friendly architectural design such as solar chimneys, natural ventilation, thermal exchange, roof overhands, water catchment systems and green building materials such as FSC certified wood products, recycled materials, straw bale)
• Water and waste management (for example water catchment systems, grey water recycling)
• Social responsibility and giving back (support for local charities and community groups; use of local suppliers of goods and services and local employment schemes)

Owners and developers, if our analysis has missed social and environmental action steps that you have taken, we’d love to hear from you, so please contact us with the details or reply in the comments.