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The housing market in India provides opportunities for buying a house overseas. India is a huge country - with the second highest population in the world (1.1 billion and counting) and is making enormous strides in terms of its growing economy. Indeed it is the second fastest growing economy in the world. However, by far the majority of the population still live in terrible poverty. Given the optimistic outlook for the Indian economy it seems likely that better times will be ahead. India is a very interesting place to visit for a holiday - and it's always a good idea to go on holiday somewhere first to see if you like the place. It's much cheaper than buying a house, and can help preventing problematic mistakes. Goa is the most likely destination for overseas investment, with wonderful beaches and a very different atmosphere to the rest of India.
The first step in buying a property abroad is to do lots of homework - narrow down the region or country where you want to buy, work out your budget, and it's worth buying some books. There are country specific, region specific and general books on buying a house overseas.
It pays to be skeptical at all times - and get a keen eye for spotting whether people or articles are as independent as they may claim.
Ask a ProfessionalThere may be investment prospects in India, but it is essential that you seek independent expert professional advice before undertaking any property purchase. There are lots of things to bear in mind, including local laws and regulations, taxes, surveyor's assessments of the building, financial currency exchange, dealing with interbank transfers, volatility of the housing market, etc. etc. In some countries there are various restrictions on foreigners owning land or property, so this needs to be checked out fully. Any property purchase is a major undertaking. The biggest Indian cities (with populations) are: 1 Mumbai (Bombay) 16,368,000 2 Kolkata (Calcutta) 13,217,000 3 Delhi 12,791,000 4 Chennai 6,425,000 5 Bangalore 5,687,000 6 Hyderabad 5,534,000 7 Ahmadabad 4,519,000 8 Pune 3,756,000 9 Surat 2,811,000 10 Kanpur 2,690,000 11 Jaipur 2,324,000 12 Lucknow 2,267,000 13 Nagpur 2,123,000 14 Patna 1,707,000 15 Indore 1,639,044 16 Vadodara 1,492,000 17 Bhopal 1,455,000 18 Coimbatore 1,446,000 19 Ludhiana 1,395,000 20 Kochi 1,355,000 21 Visakhapatnam 1,329,000 22 Agra 1,321,000 23 Varanasi 1,212,000 24 Madurai 1,195,000 25 Meerut 1,167,000 26 Nashik 1,152,000 27 Jabalpur 1,117,000 28 Jamshedpur 1,102,000 29 Asansol 1,090,000 30 Dhanbad 1,064,000 31 Faridabad 1,055,000 32 Allahabad 1,050,000 33 Amritsar 1,011,000 34 Vijayawada 1,011,000 35 Rajkot 1,002,000 [ source: citymayors.com] Surge in InterestThe interest in purchasing property abroad has increased at an amazing rate in the past five years, fuelled in the UK by a booming domestic housing market making overseas properties seem good value for money. Also, TV programmes like Channel 4's `A Place in the Sun' have made everyone realise that owning a property abroad is no longer just for the rich and famous. People are interested in purchasing a home overseas for a variety of reasons - enjoyment, investment, a new life, retirement, and more.There is some useful information on the Indian property market at: IndiaProperties.com All links and text on this site have been provided for information purposes - they are not recommendations. |