Bonapart Paris reported today that a FREE telephone advice line is running this week to help anyone with questions about family life, buying a property or inheritance in France.
The service is part of the annual Semaine d’Information sur les Droits des Familles - a week-long information campaign organised by the Employment Ministry, which has family affairs in its brief. Lawyers will be on hand to answer questions about the legal and tax implications of marriage and the pacs, buying property together, life insurance and preparing a will.
See http://www.bonapartparisnews.com/2010/02/free-legal-advice-on-french-issues.html for the full story
The Court of Appeal has handed down its judgment in the case of Apostolides v Orams. The Court of Appeal has decided in favour of Meletis Apostolides and requires the Orams to demolish their house on Apostolides land in Northern Cyprus. The judgment provides that the Cyprus judgments be registered and enforced in the UK. The judegment included
- Cease trespassing on the land belonging to Apostolides;
- Deliver up possession of the land to Apostolides;
- Pay ‘mesne profits’ (effectively, rent) to Apostolides in respect of the period of their occupation;
- Knock down the villa and fencing built on Apostolides land; and
- Pay certain sums in respect of Apostolides’ costs of the proceedings.
The case is expected to pave the way for hundreds of similar claims against British citizens who bought property in the Turkish-controlled part of the country. Some of the blame could be placed on those agents and developers involved in the sale, particularly if the Brits bought in good faith.
Bloomberg stated on 22 Dec 09 “Greece had its credit rating cut one step to A2 by Moody’s Investors Service, sparking a rally in its bonds as concern eased that a steeper downgrade would make the debt ineligible as collateral at the European Central Bank.
The downgrade puts Greece’s rating five steps above non- investment grade and two higher than the levels assigned to it by Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings. The ranking is the lowest among the 16 euro-member states and the same as that of Poland and Botswana. Moody’s said in a statement today the new rating carries a “negative” outlook, meaning it’s more inclined to cut it again than leave it unchanged or raise it.”
House prices in France rose 3.9% q-o-q in Q2 2009, after several quarters of price falls, according to the National Association of Real Estate Agents in France (FNAIM). France’s economic recovery has surprised market players and government officials, and is attributable to a fiscal boost, and to automatic stabilisers such as welfare support. When adjusted for inflation, the average house price rose by 2.97% over the same period. These quarterly price increases are the highest since Q2 2004.
see www.globalpropertyguide.com for the full story
Analysts at Moody’s have proposed a new misery index based on both unemployment and unmanageable debt leading to economic misery. The index uses the unemployment rate and the fiscal deficit as a percent of gross domestic product to calculate figures.
This measure, Moody’s says, is intended to reflect the expected challenges facing some major economics over the next decade.
The index value in the United States and United Kingdom is high, but then it’s much worse in places like Spain, Latvia, Ireland and Greece. Which is perhaps not terribly comforting.
For the full story see http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/15/a-new-misery-index
After sharp corrections seen in fellow euro members, Spain and Ireland, France’s property market and specifically Paris is not looking like it will follow its neighbours as prices show steady growth in the first 6 months of 2008.
August 12, 2008
Cyprus has been flagged up as a good option for overseas property buyers who are seeking returns on their investment.
The Mediterranean island was recommended by Homes Overseas magazine on the strength of its growing housing market. (more…)
Property investors in the UK could collect higher returns if they shun the domestic market instead, experts have suggested.
Jet-to-Let magazine stated that the recent decline in the economy, which has led to rising inflation and a drop in houses, has “eroded” investors” confidence in the British market. (more…)
A new double taxation treaty between France and the UK was signed on 19 June 2008, containing both good and bad news, (more…)
June 9, 2008
Despite the current uncertain economic environment Estonia reached a very impressive 7.1% real GDP growth in 2007 according to figures from the Bank of Estonia. (more…)