Where Landlords Rule
The Times, Bricks and Mortar, 28th March 2008It may lack the romance of Paris or the glamour of Milan, but there is more to Brussels than chips, beer and the European Commission. Now only 1 hour 55 minutes from King’s Cross, Brussels has become an increasingly popular destination for buy-to-let investors who see London and Paris as overpriced but are wary of risky East European markets. "Brussels is a natural choice for investors looking for a good rental opportunity," says Eoghan Quinn, commercial manager for Thornsett Belgium, which is selling flats in two developments in the city.
Relatively low prices are not the only attraction for investors. A prosperous, transient population boosts demand for rented homes. Quinn says "The rental pool is excellent, with a huge number of diplomats, non governments organisations and members of the various European in situations all looking for good rental properties."
Belgium is also a good place to be a landlord. "The typical lease period is a minimum of three years and rental contracts are consumer index linked, which gives protection against rising interest rates," Quinn says. "As a landlord in Brussels, the legislation is very much in your favour. there is no tax payable on private residential rental income.
Turn of the century townhouses sell for upwards of €1 million in Ixelles. New build apartments are available for much less; the Irish developer Thornsett Group is selling two developments, the mixed use Boniface Square in Ixelles and Leopold Village in the European quarter. Fourteen apartments are still available in the 28 unit Boniface Square development; prices for two beds start at €377,250. Three bed townhouses are from €426,250, four bedroom penthouses from €583,300. Most properties have terraces of up to 50 sq m to 70 sq m (538 sq ft to 753 sq ft), access to secure underground parking and basement storage. Leopold Village, due for completion in autumn 2009, is 250m (820ft) from the European Commission building. Leopold is a luxury development; prices range from €222,000 for a studio to just over €1 million for a four bedroom penthouse.
Deidre Danaher, an interior designer based in Dublin, bought a two-bedroom, two-bathroom flat with a terrace in the Boniface Square development in July 2006 for €280,000. She says "Boniface Square is right in the heart of the town, in an up and coming part of the centre, an area which is becoming trendy."
But the main attraction was price. "I paid €280,000 for 1,100 sq ft ," Danaher says. "If I bought a similar property in Dublin, I would have paid €750,000 to €800,000. The property has already risen in value by about 10 per cent, and I can see prices going up further, The European Commission is not about to move anywhere."