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One of Britain’s best known banks and mortgage providers is to open three new offices on the Spanish islands of the Canaries plus the Balearic island of Menorca to meet demand for Britons looking to buy a home in Spain.
The decision by the Halifax was taken from data showing a trend towards Britons buying homes overseas, with Spain the most popular choice.
Part of the expansion decision was to open in Menorca, the quietest of the three Balearic Islands. Commenting on the move a local travel guide commented:
‘While Majorca and Ibiza are possibly better known than Menorca, it’s perhaps not so surprising that the bank has decided to open an office on the island. The typical buyer for property in Menorca is often older than that for Majorca and Ibiza, which could mean they are hoping to service their investments and pensions along with a normal account – especially for those moving full time to Menorca.’
Commenting on the new bank branch in Menorca, the company said that the opening of branches away from mainland Spain is an important step in the development of their branch network, and that they will continue to target the Spanish islands in addition to their Spanish mainland business.
Once bought, Menorca villas are often let out to holidaymakers, with the season generally running from May to end September.
As one of the Balearic Islands Menorca is situated close to better known Majorca, which like Menorca has welcomed many visitors back to live full time on the island. Menorca property has proved popular too, for those looking for a gentler pace of life than big sister Majorca.
Property prices in Majorca are similar to Menorca property, with a range of apartments and villas in both rural and town locations, and with twenty golf courses plenty of golf course developments too.
Menorca has just the one golf course, recently extended to eighteen holes, and is located in Son Park, which has a choice of hotels, apartments and villas for holiday makers.
The cost of flying to Menorca and Majorca has come down in recent years from most European countries due to low cost airlines, especially in the island’s core tourist areas of the United Kingdom and Germany, and last year easyJet started direct flights from London’s Gatwick Airport to Menorca, having served Majorca for some years already.
The third island in the Balearics is Ibiza, which in turn attracts a different age group and property buyer compared to Menorca and Majorca.
Clubbers from around Europe, and especially from the UK, descend upon Ibiza in the summer months for a week – and often two – of non stop partying.
Ibiza runs second only to the UK’s main cities of London, Manchester and Liverpool in terms of popularity for clubbers, and some of the Ibiza clubs are as well known as any in the UK, with some clubbers visiting frequently enough to consider buying an apartment on the island.
Demand for flights to Ibiza has been high enough in recent years for a low cost airline to start two new services from the UK to Ibiza, which should see the number of tourists on the island rise this year.
The two new routes are from Edinburgh in Scotland twice weekly, and London’s Luton Airport with both routes offering a daily service. This will be an attraction for those considering buying a property on one of the Spanish islands, and this in time will again attract the British banks to open new offices to cater for those considering buying an apartment or villa.

I bought my first property in 1989. For those of you who remember Margaret Thatcher was the Prime minister in the UK at the time and the Tories decided to give people who were living in Council houses the ‘right to buy’.

My grandmother had been living in her 2-bedroom maisonette in South London for over 40 years but she could not afford to buy it.

I saw an opportunity and bought it in her name with a clause that should she die it would be left to me in her Will. The mortgage killed me for the first few years as I was also renting a house with two other friends of mine. It was also the dark black days of the recession, which saw me keeping my job but still on a 2 to 3 day week and on top of that the mortgage interest rates reached as high as 15% at one stage!

I knew the long-term gain would be worth it but at times it seemed like a chain around my neck.

I had bought the house for 34,000 pounds, which was the price worked out by the council with respect to how long my Grandmother had been living there and the discount she was eligible to.

I eventually sold the house in 1998 for 179,00 pounds. So you can see the long-term gain equalled a nice profit of 145,000 pounds in less than

10 years, an income of 16,000 pounds a year. Before I sold my grandmothers house I had purchased a one bedroom flat in Croydon for 47,500 and after 2 years sold it for 79,000, another profit or over 30,000 pounds.

My next property was a three bedroom semi-detached which I paid 127,000 and sold it two and a half years later for 189,000, another 60,000 profit.

So what is the point I am getting at?

Yes, I do have a point, I am not just bragging about how lucky I have been.

The point being, the good times come & the good times go but the trends nearly always show that cyclically within more or less a ten year period the bad times, recession, high interest rates etc pass and property prices start to rise again and again climb to a peak.

My next point is, right now we are in a doom and gloom period and economically it looks like we could be in it for the next one and a half to two years.

So what is the good news?

Well if you go back and look at my personal story you will see that the last two properties I bought and sold were very near to end of the good times. Profits were much higher than my very first property in a much shorter time scale but my grandmothers property was bought in bad times and eventually still turned a huge profit.

Now is a great time to buy if you have some spare cash and are looking for a long term investment that you can use and enjoy as well as realising the opportunity to gain a rental income.

Recent statistics show that self-catering holidays are now accounting for 60% of all trips taken abroad, so marketed right it shouldn’t be difficult to let out your property in the sun. The market research                    company Mintel predicts that foreign self -catering breaks will exceed 34 million by the year 2011, so it’s a growth area worth tapping into.

Spain is still the most popular place in terms of volume of business and the Costa de la Luz will continue to rise in popularity.

While Arcos and the Costa de la Luz cannot escape the slowdown that has hit the southern Spanish property market, it means an end to the building explosion that has been non-stop for the last five years. In turn this will see the area retaining it’s unspoilt beauty, giving the opportunity for the shrewd investor to buy in the magical and enchanting town of Arcos de la Frontera.

Arcos is a pretty white village, typically Andalucian, situated in Cadiz province.

As you can see it is close to 3 International airports, with Jerez airport serving London only 15 minutes away!

I have just invested in a development that will be absolutely fantastic when it is finished. I have bought a two bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in Novo Arcos, an extension of Arcos de la Frontera.    

If you would like to find out more information about prices and how you can get up to 1000 euro refund on your flights and hotel accommodation should you purchase a property through the promoter Spanish Sol-utions, see link.

The Balearic Islands of Majorca and Menorca are very popular award-winning holiday destinations. A mere hop, skip and a jump from France and Spain, Majorca is now even more easily accessible. The UK’s leading low cost airline based at London’s Luton Airport now offers less expensive, more frequent flights from nearly anywhere in Europe to Majorca.
More flights to the island per week also make it more realistic for Brits and other Europeans to purchase real estate on Majorca. Many Brits enjoy the atmosphere of the Balearic Islands so much that they visit several times per year.
Now, with more flights readily accessible, it could be time to stop renting a hotel room or condo and buy a vacation home. So far, British investors haven’t been reluctant to take advantage of this new opportunity. The Daily Telegraph printed an article revealing 11,000 Brits now own a home in Majorca.
Real estate investors don’t expect property costs in Majorca to drop any time soon, if ever. Majorca is currently one of the most expensive places to buy real estate in the Iberian Peninsula. Investors believe Majorca is one of the safest property investments you can make. Majorca is an island with limited land available for new construction. This means the existing homes will retain their value for many years to come.
Because of its more remote and secluded location, it’s not surprising that many celebrities have homes on the island. One of Hollywood’s favorite couples, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones, own a holiday home in the village of Deia. Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, Boris Becker and Claudia Schiffer also own homes on Majorca.
Waterfront property owners understand their property’s value. For several years there has been a ban on any type of construction within 25 meters of the coast. Those who already own beachfront property know this means if they decide to sell, they will have the ability to command a very high price. Beachfront homeowners know they’re living in a potential gold mine.
Purchasing a home in Majorca could be one of the most important investments in your life. Majorca sees 300 days of sunshine per year, making it one of the most widely sought-after tourist destinations in the world. Millions of people per year visit Majorca and neighboring Menorca. Majorca plays host to 23 golf courses and 25 marinas where, on any given day, you can see hundreds of brightly colored sailboats.
Less expensive and more frequent flights open up several doors for businesses such as wedding planners as well. Many couples looking to begin their lives together look for the perfect, picturesque place for their wedding ceremony. The new prices and frequency of flights to the island could quite possibly make many couples’ dreams a reality.
Rich in Spanish culture, Majorca has all the luxuries of a large city with a small town atmosphere. Tourists love the relaxing atmosphere, the salty breezes and the spectacular holiday celebrations. The UK low cost airline is simply making it easier for European tourists to escape their everyday lives more often. They are planning flights from Belfast, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London Gatwick, London Luton, London Stansted and Newcastle three times per week.

In real estate, investment is money used to purchase properties for the sole purpose of holding or leasing for income and where there is an element of capital risk. Successful property investment is no longer the preserve of the privileged or wealthy. Anyone can build a property portfolio, as long as they have the necessary skills and understanding. Sourcing out properties that are income producing in high growth areas in different parts of the world is our expertise.People choose to invest in property for many reasons. It may be to have a regular and steady income stream, to take advantage of the associated tax benefits, or that other investment options are not as attractive. Whatever the reason, property investment is a sound way to secure your financial future in the long term.We are aware of great value commercial and residential properties for investors in Spain and Portugal.  With Europe opening its doors to Eastern countries, there has become an enormous demand for investment property, and http://www.investment-property-uk.org.uk” target=_blank>investment property for sale in Spain is in demand.Commercial real estate is the owning of a building, be it office, factory or warehouse that is rented at a viable rent. The German commercial property market looks incredibly cheap, particularly compared with the UK.One of New Star International Property’s first investments was an office block in Berlin’s equivalent of Knightsbridge, where the rent is £9 per square foot. That compares with the £65 per square foot you would have to pay in Knightsbridge itself. Prime Berlin warehouses achieve a typical rental yield of 6.8%, says property consultant Jones Lang LaSalle. In London, comparable properties yield 5%, so investment property for sale in Germany looks to be a valuable alternative for professional investors.