Countries in the Mediterranean area became more popular in February 2010 for overseas property buyers, according to Rightmove.

There was an increase in searches of 60% for locations in the area, with Alentejo in Portugal moving up 22 places as searches increased by +27.3%. Tuscany is still the most favoured region in Italy with a +12.5% search increase, whilst Italy saw an overall increase of +0.9% as Greece went up +8.2%, Malta by +11.3% and Spain +2.5%.

Robin Wilson, head of overseas at Rightmove, said: After adjusting for this being the shortest month, February actually saw an increase on January searches, in stark contrast to last years drop off after the January peak. Year-on-year February searches are up +54% on 2009 which is really encouraging for the market.

Were also starting to see signs of increased confidence from advertisers. This month, the number of new advertisers choosing longer contract periods doubled on Januarys new joiners, indicating an much improved long term outlook on the state of the market.

Meanwhile the recent climb in Germany has stopped as Berlin is the biggest faller by -44.6% on January 2010. However, the gains made during the summer months of 2009 appear to be permanent and it may only be a matter of time before Germany joins the Top ten the report stated.