Cyprus

Third largest island in the Mediterranean
Excellent property investment opportunities
Popular retirement and holiday home destination

Luxury modern apartments and villas at attractive prices

Cyprus is the only Eastern Mediterranean country with a lifestyle familiar to the British, and where English is widely spoken.

Cyprus has a good infrastructure, high-quality hospitals and excellent shopping.

Cyprus has a low flat tax rate for non-Cypriot residents of only 5%, and the low cost of living is an added advantage encouraging more British to buy a second home in Cyprus.

Most property on the market is less than 20 years old, but there are still some traditional houses for those looking for properties to renovate.

In the west-coast tourist resort of Paphos, an average two-bedroom apartment costs under CY£70,000, and a three-bedroom villa sells for less than CY£200,000. In Larnaca, a two-bed apartment sells from just over CY£40,000, whilst you can still buy a two-bedroom villa from under CY£100,000.

The Country

Cyprus, at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, is about 100 miles off the southern Turkish coast.

Cyprus has combined business with pleasure by becoming a popular location for offshore business whilst taking advantage of its natural beauty and climate to develop a healthy tourist industry.

The island is a mix of cultures ranging from ancient Greek to modern day. And its position at the crossroads of Asia and Europe make it an important military and strategic base.

A healthy tourism industry

A strong British presence remains even today and Cyprus has become home to a large expat community - estimated at around 50,000. The British tourist trade accounts for most of the country's tourism income.

The Cypriot climate is a major attraction, with average temperatures only falling below 21C between November and April and sunshine for an average of 300 days per year.

English is also widely spoken by the local population, and the legal and land registry systems are largely based on British practices.

The Economy

Cyprus has a strong and expanding economy. The average annual rate of growth in the past five years has been about 3.8%, while inflation has stood at around 2.9% and unemployment at 3.4%. Cypriot currency is decimal with the Cyprus Pound as the basic unit with 100 cents.

Visitors to Cyprus can import any amount of Cypriot or foreign bank notes. However they must declare their Cypriot and foreign bank notes to customs on arrival. This is for funds they wish to deposit with banks in Cyprus, re-export, or for the purchase of goods or immovable property on the island.

The transfer tax is calculated as a percentage on a sliding scale, based on the purchase price (less than Cy£50,000 is 3%, between Cy£50,000 and Cy£100,000 is 5%, over Cy£100,000 is 8%). The property tax payable on a Cy£90,000 property purchased in joint names would be a total of Cy£2,700. This is because both individuals have a separate calculation meaning that the property tax is kept within the lowest scale.

Stamp duty is payable within one month of the purchaser signing the sales contract for their new property. Stamp duty is calculated at a rate of Cy£1.50 per Cy£1,000 of the value of the property up to Cy£100,000 and at the rate of Cy£2.00 per Cy£1,000 above Cy£100,000. Therefore the stamp duty on a Cy£90,000 property would be just Cy£135!

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