RIGHTMOVE Overseas’ most recent report shows that UK buyers are showing more interest in countries in the southern part of Europe, with more web searches for Greece, Cyprus, Ibiza, Sardinia and Portugal.
Searches for properties in the Province of Valencia, Spain are up more than 166%. Other top searched for locations include the islands of Ibiza in Spain, where searches were up 25% and Sardinia in Italy, up 18%.
Searches for overseas property for sale in Cyprus climbed more than 5% making it the seventh most popular country, according to the report.
Amongst the biggest fallers were New Zealand -22%, Australia -18%, Canada -13%
Commenting on the climbers and fallers Shameem Golamy, Head of Overseas Sales at Rightmove said:
“The summer sun in the UK has brought out the European property hunters, as the traditional emigration destinations such as Australia and New Zealand fall away in searches. Buyers looking for reduced priced properties in traditional lifestyle and holiday hotspots have been notable during March, with the Spanish province of Valencia seeing a massive surge in searches. The current climate means that if you are a buyer, you are spoilt for choice amongst the hundreds of properties with huge price reductions available, all over the Mediterranean.
Searches for properties in countries that have been downgraded on the international financial markets have also seen an increase, with both Portugal and Greece rising sharply in searches. This could be from savvy investors looking to cash in on the economic uncertainty in those territories, or simply those looking to research property prices before flying away to enjoy the holiday season.”
Overall overseas property searches increased 1.2% last month, indicating that British buyers are gradually showing more interest in overseas property markets.