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Bargain-hunting Britons are jumping on to the Spanish property ladder as house prices continue to fall, a specialist mortgage broker has reported. It says there has been a surge of interest in Spanish properties, which have suffered their biggest slump in value over the past year since the onset of the financial crisis in 2007. The country’s economic woes and banking problems have left properties struggling to sell in and across Spain. Normal 0 false false false EN-GB JA X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso

Britons with homes in France who already face a substantial tax hike on any profits they make if they sell are also at risk of a property slump as transactions dry up. A perfect storm is said to be blighting the market across the Channel. According to a report in the newspaper Le Parisien, property sales are being driven down by a sellers refusing to cut asking prices, higher taxes from the new French Socialist government, tighter credit conditions and would-be buyers stalling to see if house prices will fall. The report claimed 'the market is in freefall' with estate agents and solicitors reporting sales of previously owned homes down between 17 per cent and 40 per cent since the start of the year. In the gite: New French leader Francois Hollande has imposed tax hikes on the wealthy and overseas owners of French property. British owners of French property have already been hit this summer with the imposition of a 15.5 per cent extra social charge on profit on their h

Back in the days of booming property prices and a strong pound, thousands of British people realised their dream of owning a holiday home in France. These lovingly renovated farmhouses or grand manoirs were intended to be used by themselves or family and friends for weekends and holidays. But not any more. Today, increasing numbers of holiday homes are being turned into part-time gites. Enlarge   To market: Second home owners are increasingly renting out their holiday houses Sally Stone, whose company Les Bons Voisins manages properties in France, says: ‘When I went into business ten years ago, the vast majority of my clients kept their home for themselves. ‘Over the past five years this has changed — considerably more than half now look to recoup some of the costs of owning a home in France by letting it commercially for holiday guests.’ But maximising a home’s rental potential needs careful preparation. ‘Guests now expect high standards — similar to staying in a good hotel,

Sober man DUI story took turn when the Result of breathalyzer test leads to custody for 64-year-old Black man. A elderly sober man was charged with DUI, and on Monday, the man who says he was a victim of a wrongful arrest is claiming that he was charged with Driving Under the Influence because he was black. Why would a man make such an accusation? Because he not only was charged with DUI unjustly he says, but the fact that he took a breathalyzer and blew 0.00 and still was hauled off to the police station has a lot to do with it. According to Thorton, he was pulled over by police, and when the officer came to his car door, he accused the older man of being under the influence. "'An officer walked up and he said 'I can tell you're driving DUI by looking in your eyes.' I take my glasses off and he says, 'You've got bloodshot eyes,’ says Thorton, recalling the story. That’s when the officer insisted that Thorton take a breathalyzer test. Thorton obliged, and

Spain plans to offer foreigners residency permits if they buy houses worth more than 160,000 euros - approximately £128,500 - to try and reduce the country's bloated stock of unsold homes.  Spain currently has more than 700,000 unsold houses following the collapse of its real estate market in 2008. Trade Ministry secretary Jaime Garcia-Legaz said the plan, expected to be approved in the coming weeks, would be aimed principally at the Chinese and Russian markets as the domestic demand was stagnant and showed no sign of improving. Badly hit: Spain has more than 700,000 unsold homes sitting vacant after its property boom collapsed in 2008 New measures: Foreigners who buy property worth more than 160,000 euros - approximately £128,500 - would be given residency permits under new proposals The country's economy is still struggling and is currently in recession with 25 per cent unemployment. Thousands of houses have been repossessed by banks and their owners evicted bec

Despite ongoing financial problems in the eurozone, the top two destinations for home buyers looking to snap up a property abroad are within the troubled region, research suggests. France tops the list, with 23 per cent of potential buyers looking to own a property across the Channel, according to the HiFX Property Hotspots report. However, interest from would-be buyers has dwindled in recent months - the same survey in March found that 35 per cent were interested in snapping up a property in France - a 12-point drop. French fancy: Properties across the Channel remain popular. Pictured, Moselle, in the East of France The fall could follows a recent property tax hike for foreign owners as the new socialist French government attempts to raise extra revenue. British owners of French property were hit this summer with the imposition of a 15.5 per cent extra social charge on profit on their homes, which cannot be offset against their UK capital gains tax bill. But many of those loo

British investors who bought holiday homes and time in St Lucia have been left paying bills for their dream apartments, even though the development has been closed. The investors in Marlin Quay on the paradise Caribbean island claim they paid up to £40,000 for shares in holiday villas and apartments they cannot even visit. Some claim they are being forced to keep up maintenance payments to cover the upkeep of their unusable holiday homes, or risk losing ownership. Angry investors have turned on British-born Gavin French, a former car salesman from Aldershot, who is behind the development, dubbing his flagship site ‘the Fawlty Towers of the Caribbean’. French has already lost three legal cases brought by British investors in the St Lucia courts and been ordered to repay money. So far he has yet to pay out a penny. Marlin Bay – closed in 2008 for redevelopment – is not French’s only venture on the island. He has launched three others – Cotton Bay, which has been completed, and Canes an