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How to Buy Property in the Philippines: A Complete Guide

Suggestion: Watch the 5 minutes video tutorial before reading this article

Do you plan to buy property in The Philippines?
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Philippines has become a prime destination when investors buy real estate in Asia.

It’s not strange as it has low living costs, cheap real estate, a number of long-term visa options, a quickly growing economy, and promising demographics. Yes, it almost sounds a bit overwhelming.

Still, buying real estate is one of the biggest decisions people make and always come with some risks. This is especially the case for developing countries where laws can be fuzzy and change fast.

Thus, it’s important that you have a good knowledge about local regulations beforehand.

In this article, you’ll learn about foreign property ownership regulations, property taxes, visa options, and which places that should be of interest when you buy real estate in the Philippines.

Can foreigners buy property in the Philippines?

Philippines has many similarities to other Southeast Asian countries in terms of foreign property ownership regulations.

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How to Rent Out Property in Bangkok: A Complete Guide for Foreigners

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Bangkok has rapidly established itself as an attractive property investment destination in the heart of South East Asia.

This is due to a combination of factors, from comprehensive property ownership laws for foreigners, strong rental yields (on average between 4-6%), and good capital appreciation potentials spurred by the city’s rapid development.

These factors are complemented by the relative affordability of property in Bangkok, and the fact that the City offers an appealing lifestyle that attracts visitors and expats from around the world!

It comes as no surprise that international investors, especially from Singapore, Hong Kong, China and even the Middle-East, have been investing in buy-to-let property in the Thai Capital.

How do landlords find rental clients for their properties?

There are usually two main ways landlords would go about finding rental clients from their investment:

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The Impact of Blockchain in Real Estate: By OpenLedger ApS

mihail-romanovsky

Blockchain becomes increasingly interesting and receptive, not only among tech-savvies, but the general public.

Personally, I believe that blockchain is here to stay, and it’s much more than just cryptocurrencies, that some people merely associate blockchain with. I’m pretty sure that we will see blockchain in all kinds of industries, ranging from law, real estate, banking, product compliance, and more.

Cambodia is a perfect example where blockchain could help the local population immensely, even if it might take some time.

In the late 70’s, Cambodia experienced big problems when Khmer Rouge fighters destroyed many land titles during the genocide. This left a big part of the population empty handed, with no proof of property ownership. Up till now, Cambodia still experiences issues with land grabbing.

OpenLedger ApS is a Copenhagen based company and one of the pioneers to introduce blockchain services in real estate. Therefore, I decided to invite Mihail Romanovsky, the company’s CMO (Chief Marketing Officer), to let him explain more about how blockchain works, and what impact it will have in the real estate industry.

Let’s see what he has to say.

1: First, thanks for having you Mihail. Before we get into the details, can you explain briefly what blockchain is and how it works technically?

Sure! So a blockchain works like this; It’s like a database that all its users agree on. When a new version of the database exists, that all the users agree is accurate, and that’s recorded immutably in an encrypted format – that’s called a block.

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India Real Estate Market Forecast 2019: A Complete Overview

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India is one of the fastest growing countries in the world at the moment, and set to become a superpower in the coming decades.

Real estate investors, manufacturers, and other international companies have turned their eyes to this country, as it’s set to compete with neighboring rivals like China.

The real estate market has not performed as good compared to places like China, Vietnam, or the Philippines though, and the future is yet to be determined.

In this article, I explain more in detail about how India’s real estate market has performed the past years and what my predictions are for 2019.

India’s real estate market performance in 2017 & 2018: A throwback

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China Real Estate Market Outlook in 2019: A Complete Overview

china-real-estate-market

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China’s real estate market has grown immensely the past years and accounts for 30% of the total GDP. We’ve seen both ups and downs in the market, with a big correction in 2015-2016.

With an economy that has slowed down, and with an escalating trade war with the US, it will be interesting to see how the market is set to perform in 2019.

In this article we take a look at how China’s real estate market has performed the past years and what my predictions are for 2019.

How has China’s real estate market performed the past years?

China’s real estate market is one of the fastest growing in the world and a main driver of the Chinese economy. As prices have surged since the 2000s, setting foot into the housing market has become popular to gain wealth.

Many of the luxury goods and sports cars you see in places like Shanghai (I’ve seen plenty of them) are bought with money made from real estate.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, first-tier and second-tier cities like Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing have seen higher increases of residential house prices.

To give you an overview, I’ve listed the average real estate prices in RMB/square meter from 2013 to 2016 below. The numbers speak for themselves.

Shanghai real estate prices

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Vietnam Real Estate Market Outlook in 2019: A Complete Overview

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Vietnam opened up to foreign property investors in 2015 and has seen a massive growth since. Buyers from Hong Kong, Mainland China, Singapore, and Korea in particular, see Vietnam as a lucrative market with high ROIs.

If you plan to buy property in Vietnam, it’s important that you understand the economic climate, and the outlook for the coming year. In this article, I explain about how the market has performed in previous years, and what my predictions are for Vietnam’s property market in 2019.

Topics covered in this article:

How has Vietnam’s real estate market performed the past years?

The real estate market has emerged as a thriving and fast-growing real estate market in Southeast Asia. Suffering from a housing bust in 2009, the market recovered in 2013 and has seen a constant and fast growth.

Below I’ve listed the main reasons why the market has developed quickly in recent years:

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The 4 Best Areas to Live in Penang: A Guide for Retirees & Expats

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Penang is a charming island with an old cultural heritage, located in the Northwestern parts of Malaysia. It’s one of the top choices when foreign retirees and expats decide to settle down in the country.

It’s not strange that Penang has been voted as one of the top 10 destinations to retire in the world as living costs are low, the weather is great, and you can enjoy one of the best cuisines in the world. Worth mentioning is that Malaysia was voted as the fifth best country to retire in 2018 according to Forbes, where Penang is undoubtedly a big contributor.

In this article, I explain which areas that are most popular among expats, retirees and other foreigners in Penang at the moment. If you find it hard to decide whether you should buy or rent real estate in Penang, you can find valuable information in the end of the article.

Where do most retirees and expats stay in Penang?

The Northern parts of Penang have been the preferred place for foreigners since long back.

You can find more leisure activities and points of interest compared to the Southern parts, especially in areas of Georgetown to Batu Ferringhi. Some examples are the colonial buildings and local architecture, the Botanical Garden, Penang Hill, Penang National Park, Shoppings and more.

The Southern part is more local and less expensive, but have gained more traction among real estate buyers and long-term renters, and should also be of interest (more about that later).

1. Gurney Drive

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Australia Property Market Outlook in 2019: A Complete Overview

australia-real-estate-market

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Australia is the to-go place for people who wish to live in a stable nation, offering great education, and with a preferable climate. Foreign investors, many from China, have flooded the market and real estate prices have reached record breaking levels.

The country has never experienced a major decline and didn’t suffer much during the subprime crash 2008, when prices continued upwards. There are several interesting reasons behind this, of course.

In this article, I explain how Australia’s property market has performed the past years, about the markets in Sydney and Melbourne, what my predictions are for 2019, and more.

Topics covered in this article:

Australia’s property market in 2017 & 2018: A throwback

The property market in Australia was booming in 2017 with house prices breaking all-time high records. The millenials were even told to give up eating avocado toasts, if they ever wanted to afford a house.

According to Huffington Post Australia, the house price growth in the recent years are related to:

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Dubai Real Estate Market Outlook in 2019: A Complete Overview

dubai-real-estate-market

Dubai is Asia’s equivalent to Hong Kong and relies less on oil production compared to many neighboring countries. It’s been a hot-spot for Western celebrities and investors from India, just to mention a few, and seen a big growth in the past decades.

If you plan to buy real estate in Dubai, it’s important that you know how healthy the market is at the moment, and what you can expect for the year to come.

In this article, I explain where the market stands right now, present data and analysis from previous years, and what my predictions are for 2019. Let’s have a look.

Dubai’s real estate market in 2017 & 2018: A throwback

Before we try to forecast Dubai’s real estate market performance in 2019, it’s important that you understand how the market has performed the past years.

The market has had a turbulent time and some of its worst years in 2015 – 2016, when real estate prices declined much. The market has therefore been in a recovery mode in 2017 – 2018.

Still, prices and rents didn’t fall as much during these years, for example, the average sales price decreased by around 5.6% in 2017 according to Savills, while the average rents fell by 7%.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Developments_in_Dubai

We can call it a price correction for sure as the main reason behind the decline is that the market became one of the hottest in the past two decades. In 2004-2006, this small city had 30,000 cranes, equaling to 25% of all cranes in the world, which speaks for itself.

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Hong Kong Property Market Outlook in 2019: A Complete Overview

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Do you plan to buy property in Hong Kong?
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Hong Kong is famously known for being one of the easiest and best places to do business in the world. Income and corporate taxes are a fraction compared to many Western countries and places like Vietnam and Mainland China.

Not to forget, the market is transparent and closely regulated and Hong Kong will always be a preferred destination and perform well in the long run.

Foreign property investors, mainly from Mainland China, have poured in the past years and the property market is one of the hottest and most frequently mentioned in the local and foreign media.

In this article, I explain how Hong Kong’s property market has performed the past years, what’s driving the market, and what my predictions are for the market in 2019.

Hong Kong’s property market in 2017 & 2018: A throwback

Hong Kong’s property market is one of the hottest and Hong Kong real estate is among the most expensive in the world, outperforming places like Singapore and Sydney.

Real estate prices have increased by double digits the past years, in the second quarter of 2018, the year-on-year price increase was 13.5%, a bit higher than the price increase in the first quarter of 2018.

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