July
Fitzgerald Estates Paphos Digest
Fitzgerald Estates (Cyprus) www.fitzgeraldcyprus.com
Fitzgerald Estates Solomos Court 74 Apostolos Pavlou Ave Kato Paphos Cyprus 8046 Tel: +357 26 930345 Fax: + 357 26930929 e: contact@fitzgeraldcyprus.com web: www.fitzgeraldcyprus.com ©2011 Fitzgerald Estates
Why Fitzgerald's?
We aim to bring you the BEST VALUE properties in Paphos and now they are even better value... * A Safe Investment * No VAT charge to pay * Fully equipped * You can move in NOW Most of our properties either have the Title Deed issued, available or are in the final stages of Land Registry approval. Fitzgerald Estates only list properties that are safe to buy and have a full record of any encumbrances on each property.
Featured Property
This stunningly beautiful estate flows with confident individuality and promises an enchanting lifestyle for the whole family. Custom designed by a wellknown local architect. To find out more just quote the reference number 1236 (See Page 7) We continue to advertise our world class website on the famous British property website ‘Rightmove’, the Cyprus Mail, Essential Paphos magazine and the Russian magazine ‘My Island’ (Moi Ostrov) attracting sellers as well as buyers. We are seeing consolidation of prices at current realistic levels. As more people wake up to the fact that this is a wonderful opportunity to buy villas, prices will increase however prices for apartments will continue to be soft because there is a big oversupply of these types of properties.
New Title Deeds Law There has been a lot of discussion recently about a law that has been passed to ease the Title Deed situation and many things have been printed in newspapers. The basic characteristics of the new laws are: The new laws apply for any land development which is holding a valid building and/or town planning permit. The legalization of the property will no longer be a precondition for the renewal of the existing title deed of a plot after a building has been erected on the same (meaning the registration of the building on the existing title deed). According to the new law, the issuance of the new title deed will now be possible, even if there are illegal construction works of the building which are not covered by the permits already granted for the erection of the building. However, these illegal construction works will have to appear on the newed title deed. In order for a new title deed (without any illegalities) to be issued, an application has to be submitted to Land Registry with a detailed description of the illegal works which have been carried out. The Land Registry will issue: A final certificate of approval without restrictions after construction has been completed according to the existing permits, A final certificate of approval with notices on construction works which do not comply with the existing permits, A final certificate of approval for unauthorized works in case of
substantial trespassing of the existing permits i.e. when illegal additional construction work has been executed. The Building Inspection Office will forward all respective details and information to the Land Registry for the further processing of the title deed renewal. The issuance of the new title deed for a property with illegalities does not mean that these illegalities will become legal. In cases of severe deviations from the existing permits, the authorities have the power and the obligation to force the owners to take appropriate measures to legalize the unapproved works. The owner of the development or the surveying engineer are responsible to inform the authority at the time it has been completed and utilization of the same has commenced and which illegal works in relation to the existing building and town planning permit have been carried out.
The purchaser as well as the authorities still have the right to demand that any unapproved works carried out by a property owner need to be legalized prior to the issuance of the renewed title deed. The renewed title deed will only be issued in the name of the original property owner, not to the name of any new purchaser. No authority has the right to transfer the renewed title deed to another owner without the approval of the original owner. The transfer of the title deed without the approval of the original owner can only be carried out by a respective court order. The new laws have been passed by the House of Representatives of the Republic of Cyprus on 08/04/2011. All owners possessing a property with unapproved construction work (or property purchasers who have carried out unapproved work at their property prior to the transfer of the title deed to their names) have the right to submit an application to the District Building Inspection Office in which they declare that they wish to execute the right to proceed with the legalization of the unapproved works. The deadline for this application is the 07/10/2011. After this, applications must be approved by the authority. The property owners or purchasers have the right until 07/04/2014 to apply for the legalization of the unapproved works under the precondition that all necessary documentation and information is submitted to the authority together with the application.
Some property businesses are charging buyers â‚Ź1000-4000 for this service. Market Trends There are many more enquiries about our quality resale properties at realistic prices with the Title Deeds. This summer the number of visitors to Paphos is increasing and despite the Greek saga continuing there is a much more positive approach by buyers to the Paphos resale property market. Enquiries cover the whole range of property from small apartments to big villas and there are exceptional properties to be bought at realistic prices. Fitzgerald resale marketing is working for both buyers and sellers. Gone are the heady days of 2004-2008 and for those people that have grasped the fact that many properties have fallen by 50%, now is a good time to buy and sell. Russian Speaker at Fitzgerald's We are delighted to welcome Bella Valieva who is our new Russian/Greek/English speaking assistant. Bella graduated from the State University in Russia (Faculty of International Affairs) in 2001 and has also finished music school there. Bella has been in the real estate business for quite a long time and is familiar with tendencies and peculiarities of this market. She is instrumental in developing Fitzgerald's multi faceted marketing strategy dedicated to the Rusian market. Bella is knowledgeable and talented
communicator and provides high level of customer service for our growing number of Russian and Greek clients.
taxi drivers are even threatening the government with strike action if their demands are not met. According to the website www.cyprusbybus.com – “The taxi drivers complaining about losing their business to the new public bus system is confirming in a way that the new bus network has been a success and that more and more people are using it every day.
Bella has settled well into the office 'life' and her friendly demeaner, quiet confidence, good organisational skills and sense of humour is a welcome addition to Fitzggerald's team dynamics. Bus v taxi Everyone who comes to Paphos marvels at the cheap bus fares of €1 whether it be from Coral Bay to the harbor in Kato Paphos or even as far as Aphrodites Rock! The €1 fare applies to all bus services across all municipalities. However, the taxi drivers, especially those at the East of the Island are not happy, as you may imagine. One of the stories that have featured recently in the media covered the private taxi drivers’ protests against the low fares charged by the newly established bus system. The taxi drivers demand that the government increase fares on public buses to protect taxi drivers from losing their business. The
Up until last year, when the department of road transport in Cyprus, with the aid of the European Union, implemented a new bus network to replace the old, almost not existing one, taxi drivers have been enjoying a monopoly in the public transport industry.
They were thus inclined to overvalue considerably their monopolistic service, taking advantage of the lack of a comprehensive public transport system (for instance, it has been recently reported in the media that a passenger was asked to pay €70.00 for a taxi transfer from Larnaca airport to Dasoupoli, Nicosia). Like in all such cases, this worked well for those years where competition in the market was lacking.
However, now that competition is building in the public transport industry, the services of private taxis have become very uncompetitive and in many cases redundant”. The tourist area buses in Paphos are always packed and I’m sure that Alepa, the bus company, are very happy with their marketing strategy – other businesses take note! Tourism According to the Cyprus Weekly, “A significant increase in tourist arrivals for the first five months was aided by an influx of holidaymakers from Britain and Russia signaling a bumper Cyprus summer to come”. Russia, France, Finland and Greece
The Fitzgerald Office Being a family business we have one office centrally situated in Kato paphos close to and in walking distance of both the Harbour and the Tomb of the kings Road. The office hours are from 9am to 5.30pm 6 days a week with no break for lunch. So if you are working and only have your lunch break to come and see us, you are welcome! If you have a property of any kind to sell in the Paphos area with Title Deeds in your name please come and see us, we are always looking for new properties to market.
tourists have all increased over the last few months and Britain is only slightly down on last year’s figures. The Cyprus Weekly says “officials are confident that tourism arrivals for 2011 should improve by 10% on last year”.
With income from tourism accounting for nearly 12% of Cyprus’s GDP, it’s good news for us all.
Featured Property
This stunningly beautiful estate flows with confident individuality and promises an enchanting lifestyle for the whole family. Custom designed by a well-known local architect it takes full advantage of an extensive 886m/sq elevated plot and stunning 180 ° views to the coast. The mix of elegant classic lines and contemporary flair is accentuated by lavish attention to detail and fine craftsmanship. The villa is endowed with a fine street presence which carries through to the impressive, and well suited to the Mediterranean climate, outdoor living areas. Professionally designed landscaped gardens provide all-round colour and interest and a perfect backdrop to the expansive pool, garden dining area, sunbathing pavilion and a myriad of private courtyards. The pool is ‘hydrazzo’ coated (crushed non-slip marble) and benefits from solar heating collectors which extend the swimming season by 2 months. Over the brilliant two-level floor plan, there are three oversized bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, a study (4th bedroom) and expansive living areas with each room seamlessly connecting to superb terraces and balconies. The over-sized master-suite is a truly luxurious retreat and you’ll love the spectacular, uninterrupted vista to the sea!
The meandering interior offers a crisp palette of cream and white, glistening marble tile floors and bathrooms with matching marble vanities. The main living and dining areas, which incorporate a granite inlaid gourmet kitchen, effortlessly open out to an impressive, elevated, al-fresco area with direct access to the pool and gardens. The villa has cavity-insulated walls, double glazing and gas-fired central heating. In addition there is a ‘living flame’ gas fireplace in the living room. Added conveniences include a security system, an abundance of storage, an irrigation sprinkling system and covered parking area for two cars. Easy Access Country Location This villa is superbly located whatever your requirements and interests. Situated on the edge of the quiet hill village of Prastio, it is less than ten minutes away from unspoilt beaches. For restaurants and water sports you have the holiday village of Pissouri and for golf there’s the stunning five-star resort course at Aphrodite Hills – all within fifteen minutes. Paphos International Airport is a mere twenty five minute drive. Half an hour east and you’re in Limassol with its shopping malls and bustling night life, half an hour west and you can enjoy the picturesque seafronts and archaeological sites of Paphos. Half an hour to the north, you are in the Troodos mountain nature reserve, which is ideal for walking or snow-skiing in winter. You really must inspect this property to truly appreciate the free flowing design that gives this property an edge both in design and functionality. This is a showpiece country estate that you should see soonest. Quote Reference 1236
Lidl Well, at long last the opening date for the Paphos store on Tomb of the Kings Road has materialised - the 30th June – and passed. As expected the car park was full and the crowds of bargain hunters were swarming by 9 am on the morning of opening. It had a very festive air to the event with balloons and marquees to welcome the onslaught! This is a long-awaited event, but as we publish our Newsletter on the 1st, we cannot give you details of what the store is like until next month, none of us were brave enough to venture into the Melee on the opening day. Presumably it will follow on from the other stores on the island and if so, then it will be a few months before the majority of Lidl’s own brand products reach the shelves. The best advice is to probably to keep away for a couple of weeks and let things settle, as at a previous store opening there were so many people that fighting broke out over car parking!! Just started this month is the excavating for the new Mall at the traffic lights at the intersection of the road to the harbor and the Tomb of the Kings Road. Work is due to last 18 months, so in theory(!) the Mall could be open for Christmas 2012 – watch this space (and also the building site). Summer After the most peculiar Spring, (most Cypriots cannot remember such a long and cold spell), Summer has arrived with temperatures to match. Even so, it is still pleasant on an evening and if you’re above the humidity line, then the soft ones amongst us still need a blanket. The tourists have arrived in droves and this year we have a lot of visitors from Russia, though Paphos has not usually been their first destination choice in Cyprus. This should be good news for the property market and especially for Fitzgeralds as we have a new Russian member of staff, which means we don’t have to talk in a loud voice and wave our arms about if a non-British client comes to the office! You may have realised that over the last few months, there has been quite a bit of change in our staff members. We hope that we have finally found the right people and in next month’s Newsletter, we’ll give you more information.
Pafos Aphrodite Festival This annual event comes round quicker and quicker each year!! 2011 brings us Offenbach’s “Les Contes d’Hoffman”, (Tales of Hoffman), performed by the Opera of the National Theatre, Prague. The dates to remember are 2/3/4 September. Les Contes d'Hoffmann by Jacques Offenbach premiered in Paris in 1881, a few months after the death of the composer and remains particularly popular until today. Jacques Offenbach was one of the biggest composers of popular music in 19th century Europe, one of the creators of the music kind of operetta and one of the pioneers of contemporary music comedy. For reservations and additional information please contact the offices of the Pafos Aphrodite Festival Cyprus Company in Pafos at 26822218, the all-Cyprus toll free number 8000 8005 or visit the company's website www.pafc.com.cy to book your ticket online. Ticket prices are as following: €35, €50, €60 and €80. There will be a simultaneous translation in Greek and English via subtitles. Hermes Airports Alfred van der Meer, the CEO of Hermes Airports said this week that some 35 million passengers have used Larnaca and Paphos airports over the past five years. Both airports have been recognized by the airlines, passengers, tour operators and professional organizations for the quality of their services. In the past two years, Larnaca and Paphos have consistently ranked among the top five airports in the world for customer satisfaction in the tour operator Thomson’s quarterly survey of over 70 international airports. With the refurbishment of Paphos airport and the new Larnaca airport, this has heralded the return to tourism growth for Cyprus. New airlines and new source markets for tourism are leading to better results with further growth expected in 2012 with the addition of new connections to Iran, South Europe and Britain. Larnaca airport has a capacity for more than 7.5 million passengers a year and Paphos airport for 2.7 million. The Government has pledged €4 per passenger from destinations with no connections to Cyprus and Hermes Airports up to €10 per arriving passenger from Russia, Middle East including Iran, northern Europe, South Europe and now all Europe including the UK.
Cyprus implements strategy on waste management The government has implemented a national strategy on waste management, Interior Minister Neoklis Sylikiotis has been stressing the importance of raising awareness to reduce the volume of waste produce. Cyprus is among the EU countries that produce the largest volume of garbage. Sylikiotis said that it was time for the Cypriots to adopt an alternative approach that will help improve the quality of life, such as waste reduction, recycling, reuse and recovery. The Minister congratulated Green-Dot Cyprus, which in cooperation with the municipalities implements source separation programs, which cover all cities and 85% of the population. Cyprus can offer new oil and gas supply routes to Europe Cyprus could become a key geopolitical and geo-strategic player in the Mediterranean Region, offering opportunities for new oil and gas supply routes to Europe, Commerce Minister Antonis Paschalides has told the 2nd Mediterranean Oil and Gas Conference taking place in Athens. He noted that Cyprus is following its own hydrocarbon exploration programme within its Exclusive Economic Zone and has already conducted an Offshore Licensing Round in 2007, which resulted in the granting of one Hydrocarbon Exploration License. ”Exploration activities are well underway, with the continuous appraisal of offshore prospects. According to the relevant schedule, an exploratory drilling in one of the offshore exploration blocks will take place by the end of this year. Depending on the outcome of the findings from this exploratory drilling, options including the transfer of natural gas via a undersea pipeline and the potential for a liquefaction unit in Cyprus, will be evaluated,” he added. This, he concluded, “offers additional benefits as well, since an EU – Eastern Mediterranean energy cooperation would radically contribute and act as a catalyst to the development of the region and to the increase of the geopolitical stability and solidarity. This will result in the Eastern Mediterranean region becoming an area of sustainable and balanced economic development based on comprehensive cooperation. At the same time, it will create the necessary conditions for prosperity, dialogue, stability and peace in the region,”.
Out & About The Church of Agia Kyriaki is a very special place because of the visit of Paul the Apostle. This Greek Orthodox church is now also the home of the Catholic and Anglican congregations. Each year the Greek orthodox church still uses the church for special events, The Feast Saints Peter & Paul is just one occasion. The other congregations were invited to attend a service in the Church grounds by the Greek Orthodox Church to celebrate the feast, a procession followed the service accompanied by a marching band. Various dignitaries including Bishop George, three other bishops, members of the Cypriot Army, navy and local politicians were in attendance. The Latin Parish Hall The much used building is in need of roof repairs, the parishioners got together to raise the money and have a good time in the process. The Band were Mid Life Crisis and the parishioners and friends were themselves!
Entertainment In Paphos - with Jezebel Here are some of the Highlights of the coming months entertainment in Paphos. (www.groovejetmedia.com) Friday 8th July Orchestral performance of Music From Films at Ancient Odeon 8.30pm Tributes to Maria Callas and Enrico Caruso as part of the three day ‘Music Open Pafos’ festival. 8pm at the Coral Beach Hotel. www.music-openpafos.com www.cyprus-tickets.com 70009393 Saturday 9th July Music from classic world cinema presented as part of the three day Music Open Pafos festival. 8pm at the Coral Beach Hotel. www.music-open-pafos.com www.cyprus-tickets.com 70009393 Sunday 10th July Gala concert ‘From Russia with Love’ as part of the three day Music Open Pafos festival with award winning international young opera singers. 8pm at the Coral Beach Hotel. www.music-open-pafos.com www.cyprus-tickets.com 70009393 Chris King as Elvis and Ben does Buble at Tala Amphitheatre, top of Stephanie Hill, Doors 7pm Starts 8pm. €5 on door. Bar on site no food or drink allowed in auditorium 26653132 Saturday 23rd July Neil James at Frog and Toad, Coral Bay €15 inc meal and donation to Cancer patients Support group 26654007 Sunday 24th July Smiles Trio as part of the Paradise Jazz Festival, Paradise Place, Pomos 99516932 www.paradiseplaceproductions.com Saturday 30th July Smiles Trio as part of the Paradise Jazz Festival, Paradise Place, Pomos 99516932 www.paradiseplaceproductions.com And finally a few Goodies to put into diary for future reference: Wednesday 3rd August Night of Aphrodite at Ancient Odeon Kato Pafos www.cyprus-tickets 7000 9303 Saturday 27th August AbbaphroditeFabulous The Musical at Tala Amphitheatre. Doors 7pm, show 8pm. Bring cushion, No food or drink allowed in auditorium. Tickets €5 from Hearns Bookshop, Oliver’s Deli, Oscar’s Sandwich Bar, Kava Café or Music Gallery, or call 99831136 or 26653132 or email info@groovejetmedia.com