Asian investors are the largest group snapping up foreign property according to research. But in which cities are they investing? And why?

As more people's attention is being drawn to real estate as an asset class, a larger number of people are seeking out foreign property. 2017 saw a large number of Asian investors enter the market sweeping up properties from the US to Canada straight to France. Recently, contrary to expectations, their attention is being drawn to residential and commercial properties in London, UK.

Propertywire's first quarter of 2018 stats https://www.propertywire.com/news/global-news/londons-commercial-property-market-top-draw-international-buyers/ reveal that overall about 5.6 billion pounds of foreign money was invested in London, with Asian investors contributing about 4.4 billion pounds or 65% of the total investments. The next highest was Hong Kong at 5 billion with Paris following from behind at 1.9 billion pounds.

If you're looking to invest in real estate, one of the major factors you would need to consider is liquidity. Based on liquidity, these are the top performing cities for cross-border real estate investing in 2018. This is indirectly influenced by population growth, employment growth and usually followed by an increase in home values or strong rental yield. 

•   New York, USA: Brooklyn and Manhattan are two of New York's favorite hot spots for foreign real estate investors. The activity of Chinese, Russian and Middle Eastern real estate investors, paying cash on high-end properties has consistently driven New York City’s real estate price upwards. With a population growth that hasn't slowed down, New York City real estate not only offers liquidity but stability for real estate investors.

•   London, UK: Despite Brexit, London leads the way as a favorite for foreign real estate capital. In the aftermath of Brexit, the attention to both London's commercial and residential real estate has been largely driven by a weaker pound and more affordable housing. Foreign real estate activity in London is largely funded by equity funds, institutional investments, and private capital. Units in the mid-range segments have been most popular among buyers. Presently, though, the government is setting tax constraints on foreign real estate investing as the cost of home ownership increases.

•    Hong Kong, China: In 2017, Hong Kong was named the "most luxurious" prime housing market for the second year running by Christie's real estate https://www.christiesrealestate.com/eng/sales/hkg . Hong Kong's housing market has shown little cooling with 4.4 billion pounds of foreign money spent by foreign investors in 2018 first quarter. The heated market in Hong Kong, as experts pinpointed, is a major reason for increased residential housing prices all through China.

•    Paris, France: The French economy is seeing a boom with the number of foreign investment activity reaching a 10 year high last year. The French economy exceeded expectations with a 2.2% growth, a large number of jobs created and strong real estate activity. Also with fairly stable mortgage rates, many investors are picking up properties in Paris and Bordeaux. Beyond 2018, analysts speculate the South of France will experience a strong housing demand.

•    Los Angeles, CA: Los Angeles may soon replace Hong Kong as the no 1 most expensive city for expats. Currently, the average price of a luxury property in Los Angeles is $2.5 million. With population growth, increasing disposable income and a thriving tech sector, Los Angeles real estate offer stability and liquidity for investors. However, housing is in short supply. A situation leading to soaring house prices. With population growth and a great economy, Los Angeles is a great option for single-family investors seeking high rental yield.

Knowing the extra costs and preparing ahead will help reduce the stress of overseas property investing. Much of this boils down to targeted research. However, here is a brief overview of the extra costs you have to face.

Buying property overseas is both an exciting and a frightening prospect. The most frightening aspect is the cost. Most buyers are delving into relatively uncharted lands personally and knowledge-wise, hence they don't really have a 100% certainty about price. There are extra costs lurking here and there and the chief is foreign taxes. Foreign taxes represent the largest share of extra cost for foreign property buyers. It is important to get the advice of a property specialist on property taxes in your destination country. The key to successfully investing in foreign housing is knowing how to budget for extra costs. Putting money down for these extra costs will put you at ease and the remaining specs will come together smoothly.

Additional Costs To Budget For When Buying property overseas

Extra costs can be overwhelming and have the capacity to snuff the life out of your foreign property venture. Preparing ahead is your best bet. You will need to budget for the cost of travelling back and forth, annual carrying costs and in some cases, stamp duty when the property is eventually sold. And combining these costs can add up to 15% of the home's market value. In many cases, additional costs on foreign property investing will fall into these categories:

1. Mortgage Arrangement fees.

Your bank or private lender will charge a fee for arranging funds for your mortgage. These fees will vary according to your mortgage. In some cases, they will be added to your mortgage. You don't want this (so ask upfront). In which case, you will have to pay interest on that amount.

2. Property Purchase Taxes.

·         VAT (Value Added Tax): Property owners fail to take this into account. But it is mandatory in many countries. The VAT is similar to a sales tax for property owners in the United States or the goods and services tax that Canadian property owners have to pay.

·         Stamp Duty fee (on new properties in some countries) fluctuates relying upon the locale the property is in. It is calculated as the percentage of the price tag which varies but is normally in the range of 0.5% and 1.5% of the price.

·         Miscellaneous: In Spain, for instance, when purchasing a property from a private owner, Transfer Tax (ITP, Impuesto sobre Transmisiones Patrimoniales) is paid rather than VAT. The ITP rate differs from place to place, but is in the range of 6% and 10% of the purchase price. In Quebec, there is something called a welcome tax, It usually costs about 1 to 1.5% of the underlying price tag, although the cost generally depends upon the value of the property.

3. Legal fees.

Legal fees also vary from country to country. It is common for Spanish lawyers to calculate their commission for the purchase of a property based on a percentage of the purchase price of the property (generally this is 1%, subject to a minimum fee of around € 1000).

4. Notary fees and Land Registry.

These rates will also depend on the purchase price and the complexity of legal documentation. You can expect to pay around € 750 for land registration fees and € 1,000 for notary expenses.

5. Maintenance.

Beyond the issue of foreign taxes, homeowners should also plan the cost of hiring a property manager to oversee the maintenance problems and concerns of renters, especially if they plan to rent the property year-round.

By investigating all the costs associated with foreign owned property, potential buyers can focus on enjoying their home abroad without having an unexpected blow to their pockets. If a buyer does their research and saves upfront, they can eliminate stress and prevent extra costs from adding up.

Despite the ease of access created by the internet, buying a home is still a complicated process. You need third part assistance when making this very important financial transaction. Navigating the complexities of home buying or selling can be especially tough if you're going at it for the first time. While we do not dispute the fact that you can buy or sell your home yourself. Facts reveal that buying or selling a home through a real estate agent would net you more money.

For sellers, 4% of the sales price is charged for real estate agent services. This might be thousands of dollars that you would otherwise count as profit. Statistics however reveal that going it alone can cost you more in profits. The average FSBO seller makes $40,000 lesser in profit than an agent-assisted seller.

When you hire an agent, you're paying for expertise and information. Real estate agents have an exclusive database, the Multiple Listing service (MLS), which shows them how the prices of properties have changed over time. As a buyer, you might be paying more for a house that you feel attracted to. Without an agent, you might be buying a house that will turn out to be a money pit and paying more than you should for it. Experience, access to the MLS, knowledge of the marketplace makes agents invaluable to new buyers and sellers. Still not convinced? Look at these 3 ways buying or selling real estate on your own will cost you more.

1. Shortened range. If you’re going on your own as a seller, buyers with agents might not want to work with you, which limits your reach. Having a real estate agent creates a sense of convenience. The real estate agent's job is to act as liaison between the seller and the buyer. When one party has an agent, the other does not, the party with extra help has the upper hand, since the agent is working in his or her best interest. Also, buyers looking for homes will have a shortened range. Apart from the MLS access, an agent has connections with other agents and can easily match home buyers with a wide range of houses that meet their tastes. A real estate agent will track down homes that meet your criteria; get in touch with seller's agents in charge and make appointments for you to view the homes. You have to play this tag yourself if you're buying on your own.

2. Slip ups. An agent's job sells or buys houses full time. A seller looking to sell on his own probably has a job and cannot be 100% committed to the business of home selling, which does require much work. You have to answer calls from interested parties, answer questions and make appointments. There could be occasional slip ups, which will cost you money. Note that potential buyers are likely to move on if you tend to be busy or don't respond quickly enough.

3. Tricky negotiations. Buyers and sellers do not always have an easy relationship as each is looking for their own best interests. As a buyer, you might not know how well to express the fact that you find the wood-paneled walls and shag carpet contemptible. Your real estate agent can express your concerns to the seller's agent. Acting as a messenger, he would likely be in a better position to negotiate a discount without ruffling the homeowner's feathers.

Buying or selling a home is not a straightforward task, buyers and sellers want to niggle about price, contracts are hard to handle, mortgage issues might crop up. A professional real estate agent can help you achieve a smooth transaction while saving you money in the home deal.