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A comprehensive guide to property tax and buying real estate in the Netherlands for expatriates and would-be property investors

Moving abroad and starting a new life is a fantastic time to change old bad financial habits and start afresh – here’s how to do it!

Ten top tips to help expatriates who are living abroad and who need more cash to earn some more money from their unique expat status

What has happened to the appeal of gold as the price of gold futures falls, the appeal of the commodity wanes and the US dollar bounces back in investor’s affections?

Is HM Revenue and Customs getting desperate to find tax income in latest offshore tax amnesty?

Those hoping to invest money in euro savings were boosted yesterday as the value of the pound rose to its highest against the currency in a month.

One euro was worth just over 85 pence at the peak of yesterday’s trading, which also saw Sterling reach £1.65 as positive news emerged about the UK housing market.

This was provided by Nationwide, which produced house price figures for July indicating a 1.3 per cent increase during the month, the third successive positive monthly figure.

Currency research director at trading site Forex.com Jane Foley told Reuters: "Sterling has definitely benefitted from the data".

News of the jump comes days after a poll by Reuters found that all 75 economists questioned expected the August meeting of the governing council of the European Central Bank to agree to hold the main refinancing operations rate at one per cent when it meets next week.

This rate has been cut several times in recent months, having been as high as 3.75 per cent before the council’s November 2008 meeting.

Written by Jamie Musk

International property investors can find plenty of foreclosed homes in many countries, but the best prospects are in the US and the UAE, it has been stated.

Head of research at investor support service Property Frontiers Paul Chadd said these countries can offer the best prospects for increases in value in the long run.

In the US, he stated, it is important to avoid places where prices are low but the economic prospects are fairly gloomy – like Detroit – while Florida offers promise because of its tourism.

This should be recognised because however cheap such property may be, the same "basic rules" will apply, Mr Chadd stated, adding: "Do your market research; if the underlying fundamentals don’t exist, do not invest."

He stated that for this reason Spain is another country where the prospects are not so good because of its high unemployment, whereas Abu Dhabi has great long-term potential due to the "advantage" of seeing neighbouring Dubai develop first and "learning" from its mistakes.

Figures from property research firm RealtyTrac showed that in the US the first half of 2009 saw 1.9 million foreclosure filings on 1.5 million homes.

Written by Tom Britten

Those keen on living in the US can find many more bargains than used to be the case, it has been stated.

Director at property firm Mayfair International Realty Annette Reeve said: "Prices are down so much and you can get such good buys."

She commented that US government figures out this week showing an 11 per cent rise in new home sales in June revealed that stimulus cash to help lower-income families get on the housing ladder is working.

"If you start at the bottom it filters its way up through the market and I think that is having a good effect," Ms Reeve remarked.

Such considerations may encourage those keen to change their life by moving to the US.

The figures for new home sales, which were produced by the US Census Bureau and the department of housing and urban development, said 384,000 such dwellings were purchased last month, compared with 346,000 in May.

Written by Andy Price

Those emigrating to the Australian state of Queensland could find themselves opting for Brisbane over the Gold Coast as a more affordable choice.

Figures from RP Data show that the popular surfing area has seven of the ten most expensive suburbs in Australia outside the state capitals, with two – Surfers Paradise and Mermaid Beach – having average prices above $1 million (£501,000), Goldcoast.com reports.

The news provider quoted RP Data researcher Cameron Kusher saying: "In many cases property values on the Coast are higher than they are in Brisbane, particularly for houses."

"It is getting harder and harder to get affordable property on the Gold Coast," he added.

Other research from RP Data has found that Queensland has seen the highest influx of new residents of any Australian state in the past year.

The 107,000 new entrants were a mix of other Australians and immigrants from abroad, whereas second-placed Victoria with 102,000 had most of its increase accounted for by incomers from overseas.

Written by Tom Musk

The eurozone is not likely to see any increase in interest rates in the next year, economists have predicted in a new survey.

A poll by Reuters of 75 experts found that all of them expect the governing council of the European Central Bank (ECB) to hold the main refinancing operations rate at its current one per cent figure when it meets on August 6th.

The consensus among the economists was that the ECB will not raise the rate again until at least the fourth quarter of 2010.

Commenting on the situation, one of the economists, Robert Barrie of Credit Suisse, told Reuters: "The economy is hopefully heading towards recovery but we are not likely to see growth until next year, so rates will be on hold for some time yet."

The current interest rate was set when it was trimmed from 1.25 per cent at the governing council’s May meeting.

It had been as high as 3.75 per cent before the November 2008 meeting.

Written by Jamie Musk