From Business Report

With London and Sydney remaining top spots where South Africans buy properties, locals are missing out on investment opportunities in other fertile markets.

In its latest research report this week, property investment company IP Global lifted the lid on a number of property markets offering good growth and, most importantly, easy access for South Africans.

George Radford, the group’s director for Africa, pointed to European capitals, such as Berlin and Edinburgh, as offering good investment prospects for locals. He said those markets worked for South Africans looking for “offshore investments that generate income in sterling, euros, Australian or US dollars”.

IP Global’s Global Real Estate Outlook report, a quarterly analysis, pointed to Berlin for its large rental market.

“Just 14 percent to 16 percent of the city’s residents are home-owners, making it very much a landlord’s market,” Radford said.

Berlin is Europe’s third-largest city, with “key regeneration projects (that) have reinvigorated previously neglected parts”, he said.

IP Global’s report indicates that “apartment prices rose strongly across 2014, with the average increase hitting 10.1 percent, with rents up 6.6 percent year-on-year”.

The German capital is forecast to have at least 250 000 new residents by 2030, further pushing up the demand for accommodation. Elsewhere in Europe, the group pointed to Dublin in Ireland and Edinburgh in Scotland as good investment choices for South Africans.

Read more at Business Report