PROPERTY PRICES
I’ve had a couple of clients recently who have been disturbed by the increase in prices of my properties. They tell me that there is a crisis and therefore prices shouldn’t increase. I’ve explained to them that they have had almost three years to get their act together, get off the fence and put their money where there mouths are. But no, three years after many of my prices were halved they are still thinking about a possible purchase.
I have explained many times that country properties in Umbria, of a family size, about 150 sqmt are now exceedingly difficult to find, and as for one with a vineyard, cypress-tree-lined drive and a few outbuildings for a knock-down price, forget it. Prices in this area are underpinned by the peasant farmers who still own much of the stock, crises don’t worry them, they live off the land, and they know that Rossi or Verdi or Giuseppi, over the hill, four years ago got X millions ( they still talk in Lire) for his house, and, often with an impressive thump on the table, with a fist, they won’t take a penny less!
There are no new houses allowed to be built in the local countryside at all, under any circumstances, ever! And that is that. However one could buy a much larger building than is required, enlarge it, which is legal, divide it, sell half and see a good return on one’s investment, either restored or not.
Property is a commodity, like gold, rare earths, cocoa and maize. The only difference being, because of the variety of influences which affect property prices, there is no global price, it can’t be listed on the stock exchange and it doesn’t fluctuate on a minute-to-minute basis, but it does rise and fall according to supply and demand.
If I own twenty equal houses and sell one of them then I have realised 5% of my assets, but the market for houses is still buoyant, so I imagine I’m allowed to increase the price of the other houses by 5% because the stock is 5% more rare and there are customers out there.
If however I only have the twenty original houses and I look upon them as my pension fund, then I only need to sell one a year for the next twenty years to keep me in the necessities of what pensioners require, a pair of slippers, a pot of tea and the TV Times. But in twenty years what will be the value of your pound, dollar, rand or euro?
As the value of money decreases, so the value of commodities increase, unless there is a glut in production, or new methods of production are discovered. And this is why lots of people are now, at this very late stage investing in gold, which is still priced in US dollars which have lost some 50% of their value against an apparently shaky Euro, during the last five years. And that is why the prices of my properties, my investments have, and are, continuing to increase.
But no one berated me when the prices went down. I wonder why?
Would you like a copy of property prices in the Upper Tiber Valley of Umbria over the last quarter century? Also of monetry values over the same period for your currency, compared to the others, and gold?
I have explained many times that country properties in Umbria, of a family size, about 150 sqmt are now exceedingly difficult to find, and as for one with a vineyard, cypress-tree-lined drive and a few outbuildings for a knock-down price, forget it. Prices in this area are underpinned by the peasant farmers who still own much of the stock, crises don’t worry them, they live off the land, and they know that Rossi or Verdi or Giuseppi, over the hill, four years ago got X millions ( they still talk in Lire) for his house, and, often with an impressive thump on the table, with a fist, they won’t take a penny less!
There are no new houses allowed to be built in the local countryside at all, under any circumstances, ever! And that is that. However one could buy a much larger building than is required, enlarge it, which is legal, divide it, sell half and see a good return on one’s investment, either restored or not.
Property is a commodity, like gold, rare earths, cocoa and maize. The only difference being, because of the variety of influences which affect property prices, there is no global price, it can’t be listed on the stock exchange and it doesn’t fluctuate on a minute-to-minute basis, but it does rise and fall according to supply and demand.
If I own twenty equal houses and sell one of them then I have realised 5% of my assets, but the market for houses is still buoyant, so I imagine I’m allowed to increase the price of the other houses by 5% because the stock is 5% more rare and there are customers out there.
If however I only have the twenty original houses and I look upon them as my pension fund, then I only need to sell one a year for the next twenty years to keep me in the necessities of what pensioners require, a pair of slippers, a pot of tea and the TV Times. But in twenty years what will be the value of your pound, dollar, rand or euro?
As the value of money decreases, so the value of commodities increase, unless there is a glut in production, or new methods of production are discovered. And this is why lots of people are now, at this very late stage investing in gold, which is still priced in US dollars which have lost some 50% of their value against an apparently shaky Euro, during the last five years. And that is why the prices of my properties, my investments have, and are, continuing to increase.
But no one berated me when the prices went down. I wonder why?
Would you like a copy of property prices in the Upper Tiber Valley of Umbria over the last quarter century? Also of monetry values over the same period for your currency, compared to the others, and gold?
Labels: house, houses, inflation, investment, Italy, money, properties, property, Umbria, upper tiber valley
posted by Yuliya Zagumennikova at 6:18 AM
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