I lived out there for a while and looked into it, but the return on investment (ROI) wasn't there. I made a few offers, but the pricing was never attractive enough to justify the investment.
Here's a quick tip to figure out whether it's worthwhile: divide the price by 200 to get the monthly rent needed for the minimum acceptable return. If market rents are higher, it makes sense to buy. If market rents are lower, it doesn't. Similarly, if you want to buy the flat you're living in, multiply your rent by 200 to get the maximum price you should pay.
So if spalex is buying a flat for $300k, he needs to rent it out for at least $1,500 per month or there's not enough ROI. Similarly, if you pay $500 rent your flat shouldn't cost more than $100,000.
In my experience the prices in EE have been too high and the rents too low to get an attractive ROI.
However, if you've got excess cash or are looking for an excuse to travel regularly to EE or want to hedge against devaluation, etc., then you might not worry about overpaying.
Here's a quick tip to figure out whether it's worthwhile: divide the price by 200 to get the monthly rent needed for the minimum acceptable return. If market rents are higher, it makes sense to buy. If market rents are lower, it doesn't. Similarly, if you want to buy the flat you're living in, multiply your rent by 200 to get the maximum price you should pay.
So if spalex is buying a flat for $300k, he needs to rent it out for at least $1,500 per month or there's not enough ROI. Similarly, if you pay $500 rent your flat shouldn't cost more than $100,000.
In my experience the prices in EE have been too high and the rents too low to get an attractive ROI.
However, if you've got excess cash or are looking for an excuse to travel regularly to EE or want to hedge against devaluation, etc., then you might not worry about overpaying.