Overseas investors capitalise on weak pound

Assetz has seen a 55% surge in enquiries from overseas investors wishing to purchase UK property, as falling property prices combine with a weak pound to create an attractive investment opportunity.

Swathes of investors from across Europe and the Far East, including Hong Kong in particular, are actively seeking UK residential property with a long term view. The global economic downturn is creating vast opportunities for cash rich investors, who recognise that they can take advantage of the weak local currency to maximise their own funds.

This influx of cash from foreign investors will help to break the stagnation in the UK property market and ultimately contribute towards a stabilisation of prices.

Stuart Law, Chief Executive of Assetz, comments: "Despite the falling property market, investors still recognise London in particular as one of the most desirable places to own property in the long term, with the supply/demand imbalance set to support a recovery in prices.

"Irish and other Euroland investors currently moving their cash over to the UK are buying at the best possible moment, as the distressed property market reaches the bottom and the Euro is relatively strong against the pound. Once the Euro weakens against the pound, and the UK market begins to firm up, Euro buyers purchasing in the UK would have missed the best buying opportunities, both from an exchange rate and price point of view."

Taking currency values and UK average house price falls into account, buyers using Euros have seen an effective price fall of around 25% since the peak in February 2008, while those from Hong Kong can get even more for their money with effective price falls of 28%. Buyers of distressed property have seen total price reductions of as much as 60% in their own currency.

For more information, visit assetz.co.uk