Egypt Property News

Why Buy Property in Egypt?

Egypt Highlights

Egypt is probably one of the most exciting destinations in the world to holiday in. Just when a person feels that there is nothing more to be seen in Egypt , they are shocked to discover more. 90% of the Egypt attractions are lined up along the Nile River and the mystical past and present of the country is something to be seen to be believed. There is a vast wealth of religious history in Egypt with relics from early Christianity, the Coptic Christian Church, and many Islamic and Jewish heritage sites.

Southern Egypt is best enjoyed during December to January but the further north that you travel in Egypt , the longer the tourist season is. The worst heat is experienced from June to August but the Red Sea Coast resorts enjoy a much more balmy climate and Hurghada can be accessed by air through the airport with budget airline easyJet.

The climate in Egypt can be enjoyed throughout the year, and golfing and diving tourism never ceases to amaze. Much of the diving in the Red Sea takes place by means of shore-based day boat dive operators, and there is a huge amount of shipwrecks that can be seen. This is because the Red Sea is renowned for its fierce storms where unaware ships’ captains forget about the fact that the sea is studded with submerged islands and chains of reef. Fortunately, this as well as its rich marine diversity is also what makes the Red Sea such an exciting diving destination. The fringing reefs of the sea are actually considered to be the second best, after the Great Barrier Reef when it comes to diversity and density.

The statistics of the Hurghada Tourism Board shows that the amount of visitors to the Red Sea are increasing annually, particularly over the last 15 years, and out of the up to 5,50,000 tourists per season, 80% are scuba diving practitioners. This contributes a huge amount of income to the area.

Property Growth in Egypt

The fact that the Egyptian economy is fortunately very strong and with a Government that is relaxed about foreign investors, makes a great combination for potential UK property investors. There is presently a great deal of excitement experienced by long term investors in Egyptian property and in recent times, a massive 50% growth in the property market has been witnessed, particularly over the past two years. This is expected to continue with at least a 20% hike predicted for the coming year. At present, property in Egypt is still considered to be quite inexpensive and with the country becoming a rapidly emerging market, substantial profits can be made with strong return on investments in the near future.

The Egyptian Government has been extremely cool in their policies towards foreign property investors, and have made several concessions for them by streamlining purchasing procedures, and offering tax incentives to such a degree that foreign property investors do not have to pay capital gains tax, and they are also not subject to inheritance taxes.

The Egyptian Tourism Agency released figures that indicated more than a million UK residents visited Egypt in 2006 and stayed for a total of 9.1 million nights. There has been a 23% increase in these numbers in 2007, and further increase in tourism for the current year is expected. These statistics only cover the UK residents visiting Egypt and there are many millions more tourists visiting the country from other countries.

The tourism Minister, Zoheir Garranah, launched an advertising campaign entitled “The Gift of the Sun” spending millions of pounds on the campaign in the hope that the country will attract 14 million tourists by the year 2014. He has vowed to improve services and educate Bazaar merchants to be less pushy with his “Tourism Awareness Project” that advocates “Tourism Benefits Everyone.”

In 2008, it is planned that the Dessert Pearl, a development project in Hurghada, on the shores of the Red Sea , will be released for sale. This is a collection of studio, 1-bedroom deluxe apartments, 2- and 3- bedroom apartments with facilities, like tropical gardens and swimming pools. The town of Hurghada is considered to be a favourite on the Red Sea Riviera in the north east of Egypt .

The present property investors are actively seeking a stable and simple property market to make good returns on investments, and Egypt offers this possibility in tremendous amounts. There are many different options available in the form of off-plan contract for resale on completion or the “buy to let” type situation that can generate generous rental income resulting in a substantial capital appreciation.

The prevailing low property prices can be taken advantage of in Egypt , in well established tourist hot-spots, commencing at prices of about £30,000 with a year on year capital appreciation value of around 20 – 30%.

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