A TOTAL of 94 contracts of sale in favour of foreign buyers were deposited at Land Registries throughout Cyprus in January 2010, compared to 131 in January 2009 according to figures released today by the Department of Lands and Surveys; a drop of 28% compared to last year.
Sales in Nicosia bucked the trend, increasing by 125%. However, sales in all but one of the areas favoured by expatriate retirees and holidaymakers fell. Sales in Larnaca were down 46%, in Paphos they fell by 45%, and in Limassol they were down by 35%. Famagusta managed to maintain the same level of sales as last year (12).
It appears that the overall increase in sales reported on Tuesday was due to Cypriots taking advantage of opportunities in the market as stated by Solomon Kourouklides, President of the Cyprus Real Estate Agents’ Association in his interview with Stockwatch.
As an experienced British architect (Royal Institute of British Architects), practising in Cyprus for the last 5 years, I have extensive experience of the collusion, corruption, maladministration, poor design and construction suffered by buyers. Usually, and regrettably, I am consulted after the event, when problems of a serious nature have become apparent.
Overseas buyers bring with them a degree of trust and an expectation that their investment and rights will be protected. Reassurance in these and other matters, is repeatedly given by Developers, lawyers, property agents and others.
In some cases, the problems that buyers experience, many of a grave nature, are the direct result of a misguided attempt to “save costs” by not seeking and paying for, independent professional advice, services and opinion.
It is untrue to state that lawyers will not act against influential others, and I have acted as expert in several (successful) cases here. It is possible to obtain high quality, well designed and constructed property in superb locations at exceptional value for money but common sense, exhaustive research and caution are needed.
Unless the problems with the Title Deeds is sorted, how can Cyprus expect a recovery in the property market’s.
My guess is that sales and prices will fall even further, until the trust comes back into the market !
We had planned to retire to Cyprus this year, after over 25 years of holidaying in various locations around Southern Cyprus.
However….. being fully aware of all the problems re. purchasing in Cyprus. Plus the apparent fact that no Cypriot legal person has ever been prepared to sue a fellow Cypriot solicitor regarding any problems surrounding property purchases, this does make you feel very uncomfortable about the buying process in Cyprus. The title deeds problem (especially on new build) is a major concern. Add to this quicksand of lack of trust, the £ v Euro exchange rate and the downward spiral of Cypriot property prices, can you wonder that the (British at least) non-Cypriot buyers have all but dried up.
G/C’s comments bring to mind the last line of The Eagles “The Last Resort”.
“You call some place paradise – kiss it goodbye”.
Am I the only one to think that Cyprus has a hidden agenda (a death wish!)?
Reference my previous post about corruption in Cyprus. Retirees and holiday makers have well and truly got the message about corruption by Developers, Banks and the Cyprus legal profession especially relating to Title Deeds and re-mortgaged land. There’s no wonder that sales figures have fallen off the cliff and begs the question “why is anyone buying in Cyprus at all?” Perhaps the 94 who bought in January don’t do their homework.
When people loose trust in someone, something or some country it takes years (if ever) for the offender to recover that trust. I fear that Cyprus hasn’t even started the downward spiral to the “Failed State” that Greece is now.
Best wishes for the future.