Tips for Buying Property in Cyprus
A few tips…and a few questions to ask yourself
- If you have time, drive the island, explore different areas. After all, where you want to holiday may not be where you want to live!
- There’s no substitute for doing your homework before you start viewing properties. Surf away! You can never do too much research!
- Use websites specialising in the area you like and use search portals beforehand such as Zyprus.com
- Decide what your criteria are and try to stick to them. For example, do you want to be near the beach, golf, shops and restaurants or somewhere more peaceful?
- Rural living in Cyprus is not like living in the country in Northern Europe so check out what facilities are available in villages and the distances involved. How’s the internet? Where’s the shop?
- Do you know it can be cold and wet in Cyprus winters especially in the hills? Although it’s a very short winter, does it bother you? Do you need some heating?
- What are your realistic Accommodation needs? How often will you actually have guests?
- Do you want to receive a rental income? If so, do you need to fulfill some different criteria on your own in order to achieve good occupancy levels?
- Set a realistic budget to meet your criteria having done some website searching showing what is available at what price.
- Are you ready to buy or just looking? We all need to do active research but be honest with yourself and your agents what your timeline is. We won’t mind and we won’t bite!
- Are you affected by Brexit? Do you understand how it might affect your plans, if at all?
- Organise your finances at home in advance if possible especially if you need a mortgage as lending criteria in Cyprus are pretty tight.
- Understand the buying process in advance.
- Budget in advance for your taxes, fees and removal costs.
- Only deal with licensed estate agents and be careful of the ‘one man bands’ on social media sites.
And above all, enjoy yourself. It’s a wonderful place to own a home!