The UK’s craving for overseas property is well and truly back, if the recent A Place in the Sun Live expo is anything to go by – the Manchester event achieved visitor levels not seen for seven years!

Article written by The Overseas Guides Company

Not since before the financial crash have so many British people attended a single event promoting overseas property. A staggering 6,700 people flocked to the A Place in the Sun Live exhibition in Manchester 13-15 March, with 3,000 coming on the Saturday alone – the last time numbers hit that level was September 2007.

“An improving UK economy, coupled with a sterling/euro exchange rate that makes properties 20 per cent cheaper than this time last year, has motivated potential buyers to move forward with their overseas property plans,” said Andy Bridge, Managing Director of A Place in the Sun. “Buyers have been few and far between in the last six years, so a latent demand has built up which we are starting to see come through. Buyers are more informed and quite rightly more cautious, but ultimately better placed to benefit from a favourable set of market conditions.”

Hot spots at the exhibition won’t come as a surprise – exhibitors from Spain, Florida, France, Italy and Portugal were especially popular.

“The Costa Blanca was especially in demand,” said Angelos Koutsoudes, Head of OverseasGuidesCompany.com. “We noticed how well researched many of the people who came to our stand were, indicating a seriousness about buying. Many of the people we assisted are buying with the intention of retiring to Spain, this year or a few years down the line. This show was the best we’ve ever done – by far.”

Meanwhile, Chris Please, Head of Rightmove Overseas, commented: “It was great to be able to meet the people who use our service and demonstrate the usability of our site. Also encouraging was seeing so many of our partner agents exhibiting there – live events complement their online presence with us, helping to them to give their vendors maximum exposure.”

There was little doubt the stronger pound has triggered many people into beginning the process of buying abroad in 2015. Currency exchange, and how to save money when sending funds abroad, was a key topic of conversation at the live seminars.

“Live events are ideal for explaining the ins and outs of how firms like ours work,” said Charles Purdy, CEO of Smart Currency Exchange. “Visitors were keen to find out how we offer better exchange rates and a more personal service than high street banks when making currency transfers to and from foreign banks.

The good news is that the next A Place in the Sun Live exhibition is less than two months away – taking place at London’s Olympia, 8-10 May.

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For more information on buying overseas property successfully, download the Overseas Guides Company’s free France Buying Guide, Spain Buying Guide, Italy Buying Guide, Portugal Buying Guide or USA Buying Guide – and start receiving free news updates by email.

If you are considering an overseas property purchase in 2015, whether for lifestyle or investment, opening a no-obligation account with FCA-authorised Smart Currency Exchange will enable you to benefit from their competitive exchange rates and specialist currency knowledge, ultimately saving you money and time. For more information, download Smart Currency Exchange’s free report or visit the Currency Zone.