Country houses for sale

Best places to buy abroad

Spain has again topped the latest list of the best 20 overseas property destinations for UK property buyers.

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France remains solid at number two and surprise new entries climbing the chart include Turkey at number three, Canada (9th place), Egypt (11th) and Australia at number 15.

Germany, a favourite with investors now that the former Eastern sector is opening up, replaces South Africa at number 19.

Some places are proving less popular with buyers now that the initial surge of ‘gold rush’ buying is over, like Bulgaria (down from 3rd to 8th place) and Thailand (down three slots from 17 to 20).

New favoured overseas areas popular with Britons keen to buy holiday homes abroad are Montenegro (up two slots to 16th place) and Cape Verde at number 10.

Croatia and Dubai are less popular this year with British buyers, down from 11 to 17th place and 15 to 18th, respectively.

The top 20 rundown was produced by A Place in the Sun magazine from research carried out at recent A Place in the Sun Live shows in the UK.

Although Spain has been suffering from unfavourable press reports and a decline in the property market, it still remains a favourite with British buyers.

According to property finder Andrew Lupton of Stacks Relocation Spain, now is a great time to buy in Spain. ‘It is a buyers’ market,’ he says, ‘and you can pick up property for less than it cost in the past. If you look around, there is great value to be had.’

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