As has been widely reported, Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Cyprus have been especially hard hit by the current Eurozone and USA financial problems and this has caused major unemployment in these countries - and a serious decline in most property values. There have, of course, been some exceptions, such as central Paris, central London, Brussels and Monaco, but the majority of Eurozone homes are now still struggling to get back to 2007 values.
How have hard pressed bondholders in these areas responded to the crisis?
Bill Rawson, Chairman of the Rawson Property Group, says that one of the trends reported back to him by colleagues living in Europe is that in the more popular tourist areas, many people, particularly young couples, have been prepared to move out of their homes and to live with friends or family for part of the year – and then to rent their properties out on short term leases to visitors.
This, says Rawson, has proved a huge blessing to the tourist industry because tourists are now able to hire complete homes or apartments for as little as R500 per day.
“What we are seeing here is a major social revolution which could help tourism and many families keep afloat through the next four or five lean years.”
Also increasingly popular, says Rawson, are systems whereby families exchange homes at no cost to either. This, too, he says, is helping to keep the tourist trade alive.
“These new ways of doing business with tourists,” says Rawson, “can be very happily applied here in South Africa. The secret of success is to tap into an already busy holiday renting agency or to advertise in carefully selected overseas media on your own. Recent reports indicate that the rentals obtainable on short term holiday leases can be very satisfactory indeed, especially if these are in golf estates or on the Atlantic Seaboard. It looks very much as if there is a growing trend for homes to be made available for several months a year while the owners revert to dual living or other means which enable them to vacate their homes for two to five months.”
