Second Leading International Estate Agent Predicts Malta Property Price Rise

A second leading international estate agency has backed predictions made by a Malta property company that Malta could see steep price rises in the year ahead.

Revealing their thoughts about European property for 2007, Knight Frank have placed Malta among a list of 7 European countries anticipated to see property inflation of ten per cent and more.

While Malta could see a rise of 12.5 per cent, other countries on the list are Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Poland, Romania, the Slovak Republic and Turkey.

Commenting on the report, the Malta property company say they are not surprised at Knight Frank's price rise forecast.

'Some estate agents on the island have doubted that the arrival of new low cost flights to Malta would have much of an impact on the island's property prices as there is an oversupply of houses. Unfortunately some island estate agencies are a little insular in their thinking, and find it difficult to see the bigger picture. There is a possibility that quite a few more international buyers will consider Malta as low cost flights make a three or four day trip and long weekends to their holiday home a real possibility. You only need to look at how property prices have increased elsewhere in Europe where the low cost carriers are flying to to understand that there is a reasonable chance of Malta being part of that trend'.

Commenting on the seven countries anticipated to see double digit property inflation in the next year, the company include Malta as one of three destinations regarded as mainstream by the UK property buying public, the largest of the island's property industry overseas markets.

'We often speak to UK buyers who have whittled down their choice to Malta and Cyprus, and both islands have seen inward investment from property buyers for some time now. Turkey has also seen quite a few buyers as the prices are normally lower, and there is still some countries in Europe who might oppose Turkey joining the EU, which often is a catalyst to property investment. Croatia, Poland, Estonia, Romania and the Slovak Republic are fairly new to the game, where prices are considerably cheaper. Of the seven we regard Malta and Cyprus as having the most sustainable property prices medium and long term'. Flights To Malta

Malta has received praise recently from a US travel writer, who placed the island in her top five safest travel detsinations.

In her report Laura McKenzie says of the Mediterranean holiday island 'In Malta there is no such thing as a dark and uninviting alley, while the police force is one of the oldest in the world'.

The report also praises New Zealand, Switzerland, Monaco and Singapore as safe destinations.

The news of low cost flights to the island is welcome after a travel report earlier in the year forecast Malta as being a more expensive destination than her Spanish island rivals for tourists.

'When people visit Malta for the first time,' comment the Malta property company, 'it's not normally to buy a property, it's for a holiday. But a good few like the island so much they want to move to Malta full time or buy a holiday home. If the number of tourists fall, so will the number of overseas property buyers. The low cost flights could reverse a decline in tourisnm next year, and that will be welcome news for the Malta property industry'.

Another area where Tribune see a rise in property prices is the tax haven of Monaco.

Studio apartments are already at over US $1,000,000, but Monaco property prices could still rise steeply in the next couple of years, and Europe's favourite tax haven could be out of reach for some millionaires according to a local travel guide.

Different recent surveys have all been good indicators for Monaco, showing more people likely to apply for residency and buy property in Monaco. Buyers from the UK in particular are expected to rise in number.

One survey says that the number of millionaires in the UK will increase four fold in the coming years, and the UK has become a very important market for Monaco real estate recently and will boost prices as the demand feeds through. Another survey coming out of the UK predicts that house prices will rise by 70 per cent over the same period. Inheritance tax in the UK is a big issue as many more people are above the government threshold due to their house price, and in Monaco there is no inheritance tax, which gives an added incentive for some to move to a tax haven.

A CBRE report on world property also noted that Monaco real estate prices match those of London and New York's Manhattan.