Property Price Gains Attract New Buyers To Malta

British and European investors looking for high growth in 2007 are hoping for a repeat of the property inflation seen in Malta when it joined the EU in 2004, and it could come true with news that low-cost airlines will fly on the island, giving their real estate industry expectation that 2007 could be a banner year for price increases and sales.

In recent years the arrival of low-cost airlines – sometimes referred to as ‘no frills’ – at a regional airport has seen property prices within a two-hour drive soar in popularity and price, especially among UK buyers for France and Spain.

With the advent of these new flights to Malta, there is a chance that the demand for properties in Malta will increase says the malta property agency.

Commenting on the news, the Malta Holiday Guide states that a double-digit property inflation figure for Malta is entirely possible for 2007.

“Low-cost air destinations have proved to be a magnet for UK property investors and if this trend continues, prices will rise over the next twelve to twenty-four months,” they say.

“Apart from the local market, the UK supplies the majority of property buyers in Malta, and with the UK economy doing well it is entirely possible that the island will be seen as a good investment opportunity.”

Maltese weather 

Tribune Properties, a British company specializing in properties in Malta, agrees that property prices could rise in 2007.

“With lower fares, Malta becomes a viable destination for 3 and 4-day trips a couple of times a year from the UK, and this will entice buyers to look at Malta in the same way they look at France and Spain when considering where buying a holiday home abroad. The weather in Malta and low tariffs could be a magnet for buyers.’

However, YourMalta warns that property prices on the island may not necessarily rise in the same way that regions of France saw when low-cost airlines started flying to their region.

‘The Government of Malta has allowed more land to be used for the property and we expect many more condominiums to be built in the short to medium term. Supply could meet demand. Unless Malta’s political map changes and with it a change in policy towards its environment, there is a danger that Malta will become the Tower Hamlets of the Mediterranean or 1970s Spain where development has spoiled many parts of the coast.’

Concern has also been expressed on the island over infrastructure, with some tourists and potential property investors scolding the state of the roads and – by continental European and UK standards – dangerous building sites.