Whether you’re buying a second property so that you’ve got somewhere to rent out for a bit of extra cash in your pocket, or somewhere to go and live on a permanent basis – or even just for a short period in the year to escape the harsh winter weather for somewhere a bit warmer – you want to make sure you’re choosing somewhere that is worth the investment.
There are a number of locations all over the world that have people flocking over year after year, or marking them on their list of “must visit” locations, and one of these is the Sunshine State itself, Florida. Different areas of the state offer a number of different positives and negatives, as you would expect, and for that reason you’re better off buying from an expert in the area such as fortmyersrealestate.com rather than going it alone. After all, you don’t want to end up in the retirement haven that is the south-west of the state when you’d rather be in the popular, more urban south-east.
You also need to make sure that you sit down and take the time to work out your budget, how much you have to spend on the property and all other associated costs. There are a number of factors that are often forgotten or overlooked when buying property; namely legal fees and repair costs.
It’s been estimated that it would cost around $50,000, (although it can be more or less depending on what you take and where you go), to move out to America, once you’ve factored in the shipping of your possessions, flights, any temporary accommodation you need to stay in to try and break up the trip so you’re not stressed and flustered when you arrive, getting utilities such as electricity and water switched on and then you have things you haven’t taken from home, such as furniture and cars.
Where would YOU want to live?
When searching for a property, whether it’s somewhere you want to live permanently or just for a few months in the year, you want it to be in the best possible condition – after all, it’s your property. You might think that you’re getting an absolute bargain property leaving you with plenty of cash left over to do a couple of minor repairs, only to discover that it’s a never-ending repair project that ends up costing more than your original budget. Due to this, it’s important that you do plenty of research and get surveys done on the property before you commit to buying in order to save your money and get your dream home in the sun.
If you’re buying the property as somewhere to rent out, you need to think slightly differently. If you’ve got people staying in the condo or house, depending on the property you choose, then you’re going to be making money, you just need to stay ahead of the exchange rate to ensure that you’re not making less than previously. However, if you’ve not got people staying, you’re making nothing at all and the property is lying empty, (just something to bear in mind).
Location, Location, Location.
If your property is in a relatively “unpopular” area of the state that doesn’t attract the large numbers in terms of people looking for somewhere to stay in Florida, then you might want to consider looking into a different, more popular location to ensure that your property isn’t sitting empty and your bank account is being regularly replenished by rental fees.
Just for reference, as it was touched upon earlier, it’s worth mentioning the other locations on the list of “must see” cities and states around the world. Based on Forbes research, from the tenth most popular to the first, they are: 10. Barcelona, 9. Hong Kong, 8. Kuala Lumpur, 7. Dubai, 6. Istanbul, 5. New York, 4. Singapore, 3. Paris, 2. London, 1. Bangkok.
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