A whisper has it that an increasing number of residential property investors are looking at investment opportunities in Moscow, where it is apparently easy to find tenants, while some forecasters are predicting capital growth of 20% pa.

So whats the catch? Well for starters, no UK mortgage firm will lend on Moscow property, while the Russian mortgage schemes aimed at foreign buyers involve interest rates of 11-19% plus a "loan tax". Effectively you will need cash or have to use the equity from your principal home or property portfolio.

"They should come and tell us what they want," says Vladimir Ostashkevich, deputy director of [a Moscow property] firm. "Were sure theres a deal to be done. After all, this is Moscow." Exactly what we fear!


France best for residential investment.

New research from investment company, Assetz, finds that residential investments in France outperformed those in the UK, Spain, Florida, Bulgaria or Cyprus.

Using an analysis of how much money must be put in, rental yields, capital growth and mortgage costs - the total return on investments in France stand at a staggering 92%.