Hello there,

Well, let no one say that we did not have summer here in the UK. After all, it was in the 30 degree region – alright, only for 1 day or so, but let’s not get too demanding….!!!

My daughter, an ex-South African like me who has recently moved to Dubai, tells me that there is only one thing worse than not having summer - and that’s having a summer like they do there. Summer is between April and September, as in the UK, but that’s where the similarity ends. Temperatures soar to 50*C with high humidity levels - whew – now that is really hot!

Summer this year in Greece has been pretty warm too this year, but somehow there is always a tiny breeze blowing. And there is that wonderful Greek tradition of putting your feet up in the afternoon and not poking your nose out again until the cool of the evening…so delightful. It’s amazing how, in just a few days, the easier and more relaxed pace takes over. I don’t know about you, but I can almost FEEL the tensions and the pressures of everyday life disappearing and I seem to become a nicer, kinder person…

Long, delicious meals, the sand, the sun, the sea and of course always the Greeks, with their love of life, friendliness and enthusiasm…I can so understand why so many of you want to make this a permanent part of your lives.

On to the newsletter: I am going to outline ‘your homework’: the research process that you need to undertake to make sure that you find the correct property for you, the property that you not only love, but that you can afford and is a good investment. Then there is a Top Tip, a testimonial, some interesting info on both Amazon and Lonely Planet (with special offers for you), plus a Currency festure about how to create a strategy, from that financial guru Charles Purdy. Finally my colleague, Karen Gilbert, has outlined what IFA's (or Independent Financial Advisor) are all about and how they can perhaps help you.

I hope you find the newsletter both enjoyable and helpful. Please let me know if there is anything else that you would like to see included on a regular basis – we do this to help YOU and want to know how we can best do that.

Please email me on:
Carol@Greece BuyingGuide.com

Doing your homework…

There is nothing more important in the whole purchase process than laying the groundwork to buying your property in Greece. The key to purchasing is preparation. If you have fallen in love with the country and have a picture in your mind of living there, you want to change that dream into reality – but a reality that you can live with.

I have discussed the process in detail in the new guide that Kim and I have been working on for some while now and are about to launch. When I tell you that the old guide was 25 pages long with 6 pages of tick-lists and worksheets, compared to your brand new, revised Greece Buying Guide, which is 124 pages of detailed, researched information plus the bonus 20 pages of invaluable tick-lists and worksheets and 51 pages of Your Questions Answered - you can see how invaluable this would be to you. (More information on the new Greece Buying Guide in future newsletters...)

Anyway, just to start you off, here - in point form - is a brief summary:

- Decide on a location: in the new guide we have very valuable suggestions on where to buy – and why

- Make sure that you fully investigate the area – in all seasons - and make certain that it satisfies all your needs

- Contact a good agent or developer and arrange appointments before you get there. I can help you here if you would like me to recommend reliable people

- Don't try to view too many properties in a single day - two in the morning and two in the afternoon is plenty

- Photograph every plot/property from different angles and jot down details of each one. You think you won’t forget…but after a few they are all inclined to run together

- Revisit the ones you like. More than once if necessary. Spend time just looking around, strolling around the neighbourhood, thinking where you would perhaps park your car…

- If you are not going to have a car, make sure that shops and transport is accessible

- Chat to local people, plus perhaps any neighbours, and get to know the area plus ask them about the agents you are buying through. ALWAYS get a few references from people who have already used your property professionals. And I find this VERY important: make sure you LIKE them and trust their judgment

- Have an independent survey done

- Retain your own lawyer, who will make quite sure that the people selling the land are the legal owners

- If you are building, make sure that the plans are in line with the laws regarding size and location of land

- Always account for the cost of purchase expenses – plus/minus 15 – 18% of the total price of the property

- HAVE FUN IN YOUR NEW HOME!!!

Please do let me know if I can help at any time in the future. I have sourced a number of reputable people to assist Greece Buying Guide readers through the entire buying process. These include a number of Estate Agents, Builders, Developers, people to advise on mortgages (both local and Greek), insurance matters, removals plus a wonderful lawyer who can assist throughout Greece .

I have personally visited them and, as far as is humanly possible, ensured that they will give you the kind of service we at Overseas Guides Company think you deserve.

Just go to: http://www.GreeceBuyingGuide.com/property.htm and fill out the form. I will immediately put them in touch with you.

Also, please let me know if you are interested in getting our brand new, detailed and invaluable Greece Buying Guide and I will make a note to get in touch with you when it is ready. Just drop me a line at: Carol@Greece BuyingGuide.com

How to Create a Currency Strategy

by Smart Currency’s Charles Purdy.

Currency strategy – what is this and why is it necessary?

The last thing people want to think about when buying their dream home in their dream location is changing their hard earned sterling into local currency. This is a BIG mistake. One my clients called me after completing all his transfers and thanked me for saving him £20,000. This is a wonderful saving, but how did we manage it?!

There is a simple answer - by working as a team.

John contacted Smart Currency just after making the decision to buy his dream property - he was immigrating to France and moving funds in excess of £500,000. John had a reasonable idea of his projected timings: he knew the date of the sale of his property here in the UK, plus the dates for initial and final payments on the French property. Furthermore, John had already opened a French bank account.

He had also worked out all his figures at a specific Euro to the Pound exchange rate and thus his aim in working with us was to get a better rate than estimated and, if at all possible, improve on it significantly.

As we had time on our side, we were able to set up some target rates that were slightly on the optimistic side. The rates were not unrealistic, so we agreed that if the market moved in his favour, even for a short time, we would give him a ring and he could purchase the currency.

Aside from offering poor rates banks are not proactive in this way, and waiting to the last minute leaves you open to vagaries of the market – not a good idea.

Because of John’s decision to work with a really good team of specialists, and to USE TIME TO HIS ADVANTAGE, it all worked wonderfully. You can imagine how thrilled he was with his windfall of an extra £20,000 – at a time when extra funds would really come in handy.

So a currency strategy doesn’t have to be complicated. You just have to have a reasonable feel for the relevant timescales, the amounts needed, a good idea of what your target rate is and to work closely with a team like Smart Currency Exchange.

And How is the EURO performing right now...

The Euro is currently sitting at €1.475/£1 inter bank. It was only a couple of weeks ago that the Euro pushed up to towards €1.50/£1. At one stage, at the start of last week, we were close to €1.465/£1.

The European Central Bank (ECB) had made it clear that interest rates would be increased next month by 0.25%. However given the volatility in the market place and the need for the ECB to supply liquidity, the market is beginning to wonder if the expected increase in € interest rates will happen in the short term. However, we have to remember economically that Euro land continues to leave the UK in its wake.

To get a Better-than-Bank exchange rate and to discuss what options you have go to: http://www.smartCurrencyExchange.com/smartsquotation.htm
or call Carl on 08081 630 102 freephone.

Greek Surveys…a Top Tip

This tip comes from Linda Baddeley:

“Our main word of warning (having bought already in Greece) would be to make sure you know exactly what you're buying. Investigate fully the condition of the house and its ownership. Don't rely on the compulsory Greek survey, as it is not equivalent to an English survey, and is unlikely to find any major faults (or even minor ones, for that matter). Our Greek survey sounded like an offering from the Corfu Tourist Board - "You will have the privilege of living in a beautiful, traditional Greek village". etc. etc.

Fortunately we were forewarned by the estate agent, and, with the permission of the owners, had a builder look at the property. He identified several problems not touched on in the Greek survey, including a major roof problem, and we were able to adjust our offer accordingly.”

Remember that if you have anything that you think others buying in Greece may like to hear, you can always go to the Greece Buying Guide Forum and post it. You will find it at:
http://www.GBG-forum.com

The Road to be Travelled!

To my mind there is no point in setting off on a journey without having done a bit of reading first. It’s all about 'doing your homework'. I have learnt from bitter experience that it's a whole lot better to learn from someone else's mistakes rather than your own - and usually a whole bunch cheaper too...

In my twenties – more years ago than I am going to share with you – I found myself in Corfu, having hitch-hiked there with a friend plus a couple of American fellows. One of them was travelling with a typewriter (I know….what DID we do without computers?!!) and had several guidebooks to hand. I often saw him pouring over them, planning out what he wanted to see and where he wanted to go – and how to get there!

I later found out that, while I had been lying on the beach, he had visited the lovely church of St. Spyridon and indeed seen the Saint’s silver casket paraded through the streets of the town. Later, reading about the island in ‘My Family and Other Animals’ and ‘Prospero’s Cell by the Durrell brothers, I could have KICKED myself, reading about what I had missed seeing…lesson learnt!

Of all the guide books available, I would have no hesitation in putting the Lonely Planet Guides top of the list. To find your dream property you cannot do better than take these guides with you on your journey of exploration. It will tell you the pros and cons of each place, list restaurants and things to see and do and, of course, how to get there – all things that may well affect your decision to purchase. There are many guide books, but in my experience none are as concise, as detailed and somehow as HONEST as these compact books.

The first was written over 30 years ago by Tony and Maureen Wheeler. They are still actively involved with Lonely Planet as directors of the company, and still both travelling and writing. And I think that’s the point: there is a genuine love of travel, a deep sense of adventure and a real knowledge of the locality that comes through the pages of these guides to the reader.

Today the company has offices in Melbourne, Oakland and London, with over 500 office employees and 300+ on-the-road authors. There are over 500 Lonely Planet titles, each one containing practical travel information plus concise background information on the culture and history of the countries.

They have yet again won the Wanderlust award for “Best Guidebook Series” this year – the fourth year in a row Lonely Planet has received this recognition. Just as importantly, we at the Overseas Guides Company award them 10 out of 10!

You will find Lonely Planet books if you click on:

Lonely Planet Publications (they currenty have a 30% off sale)

And then there is Amazon. Amazon is an addiction that I simply am not prepared to give up. Where else can you find almost every book currently in print, plus almost every CD or DVD?

And the brilliant thing is that you can usually get it cheaper on Amazon than in most high street shops.

I went in under ‘Books’ and typed in ‘Greece’: up came a list on Guide books, Cook books, books on nlearning Greek, stories of people who had moved to Greece, the history of Greece…the 2nd World War in Crete, Paddy Leigh Fermor’s wonderful book on Mani…

There is also an endless number of things to buy: not only books and CD’s/DVD’s, but headings like Home and Garden, Toys and Games, Jewellery and Watches – it’s hard to believe that there is anything they DON’T have here!

There are three things that have made me an addict: firstly, of course, the sheer range of products. Then there is the ease with which one can order…I have to confess that throughout our office I am known as a complete technophobe – usually I just don’t get it. Unhappily for my bank balance, I DO get Amazon – it’s so easy.

Finally, there is the incredibly good service: mere days go by and there is my order – always correct, always on time… Next time you see a film that you enjoy, just pop on to your new best friend Amazon and within a few days it will be yours for ever!

What more can I say other than ‘Amazon, you’re the BEST’!!

You may want to get hold of the books I have reviewed in the past, or indeed one of the slew of other books available to guide you through the process of buying abroad – and don't forget to take an English / Greek language dictionary or phrase book with you. Amazon is a great place to try - click below to get more information.

Just what DOES an IFA do?

By Karen Gilbert – The Overseas Guides Company August 2007

I am often asked a plethora of questions regarding preparation for buying property overseas and / or emigrating. Common questions are around inheritance tax in various countries and options for the re-investment of equity from UK property sales.

With increasing UK house prices and increasing wealth here in the UK, these both seem to come up more and more. I heard on the news only last night that the average price of UK property will reach £300k within the next 5 years! If this is the case, wealth management and the services of Independent Financial Advisors will be even more useful to an even larger number of people.

Over time I seem to have picked up a fair amount of knowledge on some finance related topics – which I hope I’ll come to find useful at some stage soon! Where Overseas Guides Company readers are concerned though, I always suggest that they speak directly to an Independent Financial Advisor.

I must say that I have always thought of IFAs as something only used by those will a lot of money. That said though, as I’m now working with IFAs, I can see their usefulness more and more. In fact, I am sorting my pension out with an IFA now. If you’re interested in the process of working with an IFA, I’ll cover this off towards the end of this article...

Financial planning is an essential part of planning to buy a property abroad. My contact Antony, who works as an IFA based in the East Midlands, wrote the following piece for me as an overview of the ways in which an IFA can assist you when you’re buying a property overseas.

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By Antony Howard, IFA.

What ever your motivation for purchasing a property overseas - emigrating abroad, purchasing a second home at your dream holiday location or seeking out pure property investment possibilities - it is important that you obtain financial advice.

What is an IFA and how can they help me with purchasing my property abroad?

An IFA is an Independent Financial Advisor. The ‘independent’ status means that you can rest assured that you are being given unbiased, impartial advice across all areas of your financial portfolio. They will provide advice on areas where there is potential for additional growth and also areas where you could be vulnerable.

In a nutshell, by seeking advice prior to embarking on your property purchase, an IFA can assist you in two key ways. They can help you with any complicated financial enquiries and they can assist you in securing your financial future – ensuring that you preserve your assets or even increase them.

When purchasing a property overseas, it is likely that you will be faced with a variety of financial options. Questions on equity release, cash flow, fluctuating interest rates, financing and re-financing alongside questions of individual, company or trust ownership, together with tax implications (Capital Gains Tax, Inheritance Tax and Income Tax) and adequate lifestyle protection can sometimes result in a minefield of choices that many of us are not qualified to answer.

Additionally, if you are emigrating abroad and the sale of your UK property releases more equity than your overseas purchase, an IFA can help you to re-invest these additional funds tax efficiently.

With the correct advice and proper planning you can embark on the exciting journey of overseas property investment, armed with the knowledge to make the right choices.

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I thought I would share with you my experience of working with an IFA in setting up my personal pension. I hope this short account is useful and acts as an introduction to the way in which IFAs operate…

I had been considering for sometime moving my old company pension - which had been frozen for 12 months - across to a new personal pension. As usual though I’d been busy with one thing or another and had not found the time to do something about it.

The perfect opportunity – Antony and I were discussing pensions not so long ago and I thought this would be a great chance to finally get organised and get things moving with my future financial planning!

Antony and I had a few initial conversations over the phone. I actually knew very little about pensions (my previous company pensions hadn’t required too much thought!) so it was useful for me to understand the basic concept and the benefits of having one. We also discussed the various options from high risk through to lower risk and the type of strategy I might take.

As far as pensions are concerned, an IFA works with you to understand your financial position – taking into account your income and outgoings - and then assists you in making decisions based on affordability, your current age and your financial objectives for the future (including your desired retirement age – I mentioned 32!).

To instruct an IFA you need to fill in a set of forms. For my pension, I had to complete forms relating to my income and outgoings and also had to sign authority to Antony so that he could have access to the details of my previous company pension – the forms took me about 15 minutes to complete and cost me nothing. As I understand it an initial consultation, which includes the implementation of your pension, is free of charge. However, if clients want to receive ongoing advice and guidance on all aspects of their financial portfolio, a retainer fee may be charged.

Within a week or so I had a document from Antony detailing the value of my old company pension and suggesting what I might like to do now. My desired retirement age of 32 just wouldn’t be possible without a small lottery win but none the less I agreed my pension plan and the funds in which I would like to invest.

My signed forms and direct debit mandate went in the post today so all should be up and running for me soon. The count down to retirement is now officially on!

If you are interested in any of the topics we have touched on in this article, please just let me know.

Antony and his team really are fantastic and I would be more than happy to put you in touch with the team there. They have successfully assisted numerous Overseas Guides readers with a financial plan for their overseas property purchase.

Feel free to email me at: Karen@OverseasGuidesCompany.com

Happy Hunting

Happy hunting and PLEASE do let me know how you are doing. I would simply LOVE to hear what your plans are for buying and where you are looking. Do let me know.

Here is a photo of me at lovely house that I saw on Corfu – if I could have bought this one, I would have. It ticked all the boxes for me - location, accessibility, a tiny garden, a couple of bedrooms….oh well, I hope someone loves it as much as I would have!!

Take care and keep in touch with me at:
Carol@Greece BuyingGuide.com

Both Kim and I send summer greetings and best wishes,

Carol (& Kim).