Rental Yields Rise, House Prices Fall, Reports Expatfindaproperty.com

UK Property Market Recovering in London

LONDON, December 17, 2010 - Data released by the Association of Residential Letting Agents covering
the three months to September 2010 shows average rental returns for houses
has risen from 4.8% to 5.0% and those for flats are up from 5.0% to 5.1%. In
addition, ARLA members reported increased achievable rent levels over the
last six months on all types of rented property.

According to the ARLA data, there has been a further strengthening of
demand in the rented residential property sector and a reduction in void
periods which have dropped from an average of 3.2 weeks (22 days) to 2.9
weeks (20 days), the lowest it has been since this question was first asked
eight years ago.

At the same time, data released by the UK Land Registry shows the average
monthly house price change has slipped to minus 0.8%, giving an annual price
growth figure of 3.4% for the UK on a rolling 12 month basis. Greater London
has continued to buck this trend with a price rise of 0.3% during the month,
producing an annual growth figure of 7.8%.

Commenting on the figures, Erica Evans of expatriate property search
agents Expatfindaproperty.com (www.expatfindaproperty.com/) said, "We
are now starting to see rental yields rise and property prices fall in some
areas. This weakening of prices is of interest to expatriate buyers, as it
makes a buy to let rental property more affordable, yet at the same time
rental yields can continue to drift higher. We are now seeing enquiries from
clients who wish to use property as a cornerstone of an international pension
or retirement plan, as buyers look at the long term again. With rental yields
still above mortgage costs for good quality properties, international pension
planning based on property can be attractive."

According to the Council of Mortgage Lenders, which issues data on behalf
of Building Societies, lending for both house purchase and remortgaging fell
back slightly in October. There were 46,000 loans for house purchase worth
GBP6.7 billion, down 4% in number and 6% by value from September. The total
was 12% lower by value than in October 2009, but lending numbers in the final
quarter of 2009 were boosted as buyers brought forward transactions to take
advantage of the stamp duty holiday.

Reviewing the data, Tim Harvey, managing director of UK regulated
discount brokers Offshoreonline.org (www.offshoreonline.org/) mortgage
specialists for the expatriate market agreed lending conditions remain tough
for onshore buyers who are used to 100% mortgages, but for expatriates who
have a 30% deposit, loans of up to 70% of a property's value are readily
available. Harvey adds, "Expatriates looking to buy a main home or buy to let
can secure interest rates of 3.49%, a figure which drops considerably if a
larger deposit is offered. As a result, we have seen a pick up in enquiries
from expatriates in Dubai and the Middle East as well as from those based in
Hong Kong, where salaries tend to be high, so deposits are less of an issue."

Useful contacts:

Offshore mortgage broker visit www.offshoreonline.org

UK property search services, visit www.expatfindaproperty.com

UK house prices, visit www.landreg.gov.uk/houseprices

Arla: www.arla.co.uk/buytolet/latestreports.aspx

Note to Editors

Offshoreonline.ORG is a UK regulated specialist expatriate broker
offering advice on UK, French, Italian, Spanish and Turkish mortgages, life
insurance, pensions and savings for UK expatriates anywhere in the world.
Offshoreonline.org is the website of HR Independent Financial Services Ltd,
who are based in Devon.

Offshoreonline .org pioneered the concept of the discount broker in the
expatriate market when it started offering no fee deals on many popular
offshore savings funds in 1998.

Overall, the company aims to bring high quality UK regulated advice and
service to UK expatriates worldwide in the areas of pensions, mortgages and
life cover. The company is UK regulated by the FSA for investment business,
giving offshore customers the reassurance that they are dealing with a
reputable organisation.

Expatfindaproperty.com is a specialist relocation and buy to let search
agency aimed at non UK residents who wish to invest in the UK, in particular
in London. The agency covers other parts of the UK via a network of
partnership agreements.

    For further press information:
    Jenny Duffy
    +44(0)20-8333-9125
    Email: jenny@nacelle.co.uk

For further press information: Jenny Duffy, +44(0)20-8333-9125, Email: jenny at nacelle.co.uk