Luxury Real Estate

The 9th edition of the Millionaire Fair (Miljonair Fair), held in Amsterdam between the 9th and the 13th of this month, has proved to be a total success, with a record number of visitors and sales. Over 53.000 people attended the exhibition of luxury items and the media turnout was also high: more that 400 Dutch and international television and radio stations, magazines, newspapers and internet sites broadcast news of the event as it took place.

Over 5 days, the RAI exhibition centre in Amsterdam became the home of luxury goods from exclusive international brands. The latest models of Mercedes, Jaguar, Mini, Land Rover and Jeep were on show for the visitors to experience first hand, along with many works of art, including paintings and sculptures with a limited production which are collector’s items. Boats and yachts, the latest hi-fi equipment by Bang and Olufsen, furniture and accessories, …, the list and choice of luxury products was endless.

Gassan Diamonds had the biggest stand: 850 square meters worth of very expensive jewellery and watches, by prestigious brands like Chopard, Cartier, Chanel, Omega, Tag Heuer, Rolex, Jaeger LeCoultre, Breitling and many many more.

In addition to the stands, the fair also provided top quality catering services with a Laurent Perrier champagne bar, an oyster bar and a wine bar amongst others. Fashion shows and live music followed one another throughout the day, providing entertainment for everyone.

Luxury Homes by VAPF, the Spanish real estate developer and builder affiliated to the Luxury Real Estate Network, was present at the event, within the Exclusive Properties section of the fair. The stand attracted the attention of many clients due to the image on the back wall of the stand showing one of the modern villa projects that Luxury Homes by VAPF has designed. The Hi-Tech villa designs are extremely popular with the Dutch market, as we had the chance to ascertain.

Next year will be the 10th anniversary for the Millionaire Fair in Amsterdam and the organization is already booking stands for the event, which will take place between the 8th and the 12th of December, 2011.

By Michael Marquette of Marquette Turner Luxury Homes

Lies, lies and more lies – it seems to be the way many agents and brokers “trick” their way into listing property. Promise the arrival of the “cashed up” international buyer who will overpay for your home and the listing is yours!

So who can actually buy property in Australia and who decides? The Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) is the body with the power to decide who can and who cannot purchase homes in Australia. The rules are vague and difficult to understand but I will summarize their view.

Foreign investment in Australia is desirable only if it does not put upward pressure on property prices. In fact it states just this on their website. So when the next real estate agent promises to find an international buyer who will pay well over the odds you know that he or she isn’t familiar with what the Australian Government will and will not allow.

Australian and New Zealand citizens, permanent resident visa holders and temporary resident visa holders awaiting permanent residency are allowed to purchase property in Australia without approval from the FIRB. Outside of that very small, narrow group of people approval is required in almost every case with the exception of:

1. A vacant block of land to build a house

2. A vacant block of land to build multiple dwellings

3. A new dwelling (less than 12 months old)

4. A redevelopment site

5. An established (second hand) property which is for Australian based employees for companies already operating in Australia.

So if you have digested that you might be thinking about selling your existing home (more than 12 months old) to an international buyer as a holiday house, weekender or to use when they are in Australia as their residence. If you are thinking this you have one big problem – they will require approval from the FIRB which in all likelihood they will not receive.

So in summary if you are looking to sell your home and it is older than 12 months old you need to be cautious about claims that international buyers are in abundance. The FIRB can take up to 30 days to approve an application from an international buyer which is longer than most Auction programs. There are plenty of hoops to jump through for any prospective purchaser and there is no guarantee that approval will be granted.

If you are a property developer and selling new product (less than 12 months old) you are in the box seat and can avoid issues with FIRB approval. I hope this helps to make international buying in Australia a little easier to understand. I also hope it assists vendors in sifting through fact from fiction when dealing with agents and brokers. Marquette Turner Luxury Homes specialize in the marketing and sale of property to an international audience. International selling is an extremely specialized field and to ensure you have are dealing with experts be sure to contact either myself or any other member of the team who will be delighted to work with you on the sale of your home.

If you are still intrigued on Foreign Ownership Rules in Australia you can visit the FIRB site HERE