Question
We’re thinking about buying an Apartment, which we will need to rent out, what are the best areas to look at?
Answer
First, Do not go into the market with a buy-to-let strategy. You will most almost certainly find that rental yields are much lower than ‘promised’.
A number of developers offer ‘guaranteed rental income’ for the first one or two years. Needless to say, the cost of this has been factored into the selling price.
Second, Do your sums. Don’t plan on getting any more than 4% gross return on your investment. Bear in mind that out of this you’ll need to pay management fees, maintenance fees, repairs, breakages, insurance, income tax, etc, etc, etc.
Third, Work out your exit strategy. You may wish to sell the property at a later date, so think about what’s attractive to others.
As for ‘best areas to look at’ what’s your intended market – singles, groups of singles, young couples, young families, retired couples – and how much money could they afford to spend?
Based on your market, the best places could be somewhere near the night clubs and bars, somewhere quiet, not too crowded and near the sea, somewhere on the edge of a traditional village, somewhere in the mountains, somewhere with facilities for the kids nearby.
Cyprus is a very varied place and different people look for/want different things.
