Buying abroad - the words hot on the lips of the property investment market. With strong buying power and idyllic properties on offer in the United Kingdom and other countries, this prospect is on many investors’ minds.
The stage was set at Barclays head office to launch the affiliation of ABSA Barclays and IPS, a combination that proved to be well thought-out, with symbiotic qualities. One of the key points was the acquisition of ABSA by Barclays, one of the United Kingdom’s leading lending institutions, which has resulted in the barriers to entry being blurred between South Africa and the European market, allowing prospective purchasers more ease of movement with their investments.
With many concerns over South Africa’s political uncertainty, energy management and interest rates, many investors have set their eyes on more secure markets, which can offer them the financial and capital security they are after.
“With the growing interest in investing abroad, we decided that we needed to formulate a strategy to make it simple and easy to invest in this country. The union of ABSA and Barclays was the perfect platform to achieve this” says Scott Picken of International Property Solutions.
Many associate cold weather, dampened spirits and an elite transport infrastructure with the United Kingdom, but to the seasoned property investor the United Kingdom is rather associated with phenomenal return on investment, a thriving property market and a place where their portfolio can be expanded to levels unimagined by some.
“The UK market is going through a challenging period, a period many countries have gone though, which is anticipated to result in amazing returns and growth. What people must realise is that property is a long term, conservative income investment. It drives the investment cycle, and much like any investment, it has its ups and downs” says Ian Fife, Editor of the Financial Mail. “Property prices have always risen faster than inflation over past decades, and rentals are less volatile than prices, falling during a property boom and rising during a bust. The end result is an investment property that grows from strength to strength”
So as the distance between the countries grows smaller and smaller everyday, the option of International investment grows ever stronger, and with specialists like ABSA Barclays and IPS, the International property investment option will surely become a necessity.
To find out more about investing in property abroad, visit IPS online at www.ipsinvest.com.
