Pole position: overseas property investment

The tracker - which rates the overseas property investment potential of a number of popular overseas destinations, taking into account factors including projected rental returns and capital gains returns on cash invested - rates Poland as the number one investment destination at this moment in time, predicting a total annual return of 165 per cent on an investment of £50,000.

The tracker - which rates the overseas property investment potential of a number of popular overseas destinations, taking into account factors including projected rental returns and capital gains returns on cash invested - rates Poland as the number one investment destination at this moment in time, predicting a total annual return of 165 per cent on an investment of £50,000.

Low property prices and high capital growth (33 per cent over the past year) are cited as the two main factors behind Poland's high investment potential, with low required deposit levels of just 15 per cent also enticing investors to the country.

However, while the Assetz data suggests Poland's current investment potential is buoyant, the figures do not appear so certain about the reliability of Bulgaria, the country with the second-highest capital growth over the last year. While property values in Bulgaria have increased by an average of 17.3 per cent in the past 12 months - up from the 13.9 per cent figure from the September tracker - the investment specialists point out that this is still only half the capital growth the country experienced in 2005. The study also points out that capital growth in some of the country's most mooted property hotspots is well below this level - 9.8 per cent in Sofia and 5.3 per cent in Bansko. It is also noted that an increasingly competitive rental market is also harming the country's property investment potential.

However, this does not seem to be putting British purchasers off the country. "We have recently been fortunate enough to sell a UK property which had given us significant appreciation," says Steve Corkhill who, along with his partner Lisa Marshall, has recently purchased a two-bedroom apartment on the Black Sea coast.

\"We decided to buy a property in Sunny Day II, a modern development on the Black Sea coast. We took into account all of its services and nearby amenities before deciding to buy, as this would be pivotal in renting the property out,\" Steve continues. \"Our two-bedroom apartment cost just over £29,000 and, because of its location, capital growth is expected to be high over the next few years.\"

Of course, as with any property in any country, location will have a significant impact on its investment potential and the Assetz predictions should be used only as a guide.