US identified as good place to invest in property

A survey of investors has found that the US is regarded as the foremost place to buy property at present.

The study of those with high incomes by Barclays Wealth indicated that overall, more than twice as many respondents (35 per cent) plan to increase their property portfolios in the next two years than reduce them (17 per cent).

Of those looking to buy, the country with the most people tipping it to offer the best returns was the US, with 16 per cent thinking this.

Barclays said the US was "deemed significantly more attractive" than elsewhere and commented that the survey as a whole indicated that overseas property investors believe the market is currently at its bottom.

While the survey covered wealthy investors, others may consider the US to be a good place to buy, as positive indicators are emerging from the country.

One of these is the number of existing home sales, which figures from the National Association of Realtors showed to have risen 10.1 per cent between September and October.