A survey shows that almost 80% of adults who have emigrated from the UK are happy with their new life overseas. This compares with 51.8% of respondents who were satisfied with their earlier life in the UK.

The happiest people surveyed had moved to Spain, with 91% of emigrants saying that they were happy or very happy with their lives there. New Zealand emigrants were also relatively happy, with 88% of respondents satisfied with their new life. Canadian and Australian emigrants followed close behind on 86.4% and 84.2% respectively.

The main reason given for having moved was to gain a better quality of life (35%).

Others were looking for a new experience or adventure (12%) and a new job or relocation (9%).

According to the Office for National Statistics, the number of UK citizens opting to move abroad permanently increased to a record 207,000 in 2006.

Other findings from the survey were:

• 84.02% of people were happy with their new cost of living
• 80.63% of people were happy with the career opportunities in their new country
• 88.99% of people were happy with the food in their new country

The Happiness Survey looked at the results of 1,122 people (40% male and 60% of female). 25% of people interviewed were under 35, 60% were between 35 and 50, and 15% were 50+.

The British lifestyle is the ‘thrid most expensive’ in the world, according to research published this month. The study by the bank HSBC found that money in every other country in the world, apart from Norway and France, would go further.

It examined how long the typical British salary would last if people maintained their standard of living, including eating out in a restaurant twice a week. It found that the average British salary would run out after 11 months and one week in Norway, while in France it would run out after 11 months and two weeks.

At the other end of the scale, a year’s British salary would last four years in Iran, two years and ten months in India and more than two years in Peru, Egypt, Argentina and Costa Rica.

Britons moving to the most popular overseas destinations of Australia and Spain would also be able to maintain their current lifestyle on a lower budget, the survey showed. One year’s annual expenditure in the UK would last 14 months and one week in Australia and 15 months and three weeks in Spain.

‘Britons who live abroad, especially those who do so for only a few months each year, and often not willing to compromise on their standard of living,’ said Enrique Roche, the head of HSBC’s Premier service in the UK.

‘This research gives great insight into those countries that will allow your cash to stretch the further and in turn, those countries that may shrink it.’

According to figures from the Foreign Office, 500,000 Britons live abroad for part of the year, while 5.5 million British nationals are based overseas permanently.

Expatriates are so happy in their new lives that nine out of ten would recommend a move abroad to friends and family, it has been reported.

As many as three in every four said that their quality of life had got better since making the move, recent research by BUPA suggested.

Meanwhile 60 per cent of the 1,787 people asked said that they liked the weather better in their new country and 58 per cent said they were more open-minded having made the move.

Tim Slee, head of European sales at BUPA International, said: “Moving abroad is a huge life-changing challenge and while our survey shows it’s a very successful move for most people, careful planning is essential.”

Many people find they miss the things most familiar to them at home, whether that be friends and family, or even favourite foods that are not available abroad.

Finding a rental property overseas could give those looking to move permanently a feel for the area before they make a final decision.

Research from NatWest Bank has revealed that holidays designed to give Brits a relaxing break from their busy working lives can actual cause more stress according to homesworldwide. Millions of Brits returning home exhausted by efforts of organising a holiday, finding accommodation, and dealing with the cost of the holiday.

As a result, the bank states that three in ten people are considering buying a property abroad, and a quarter of them are doing so just to avoid the stresses and strains of the annual family holiday.

According to the Office for National Statistics, more than a quarter of a million Brits currently own a foreign property, meaning the trauma and cost of holiday arrangements could become a thing of the past.

Indeed, a third of current and potential overseas homeowners believe that owning a holiday home will make family breaks more affordable and a quarter feel it would reduce the sheer stress of arranging holidays.

This is particularly true in countries where holiday homes are already an important part of the property market, such as Spain, as it means that developers and estate agents are used to dealing with British investors.

Mike Freer, Head of Business Development at NatWest International Personal Banking, says, “Holidays should be fun and relaxing but sadly this isn’t always the case. The hassle and expense of arranging holidays can be hugely traumatic - from deciding where to go and remembering to pack everything but the kitchen sink, yet keeping under the new airline luggage weight restrictions. And the holiday itself can be spoiled by poor accommodation, meaning that Brits end up needing another holiday when they return!”

However, as three in every ten people plan to return to the same destination each year, it makes sense to consider buying a property there.

Mike Freer says, “Buying a holiday home abroad is increasingly becoming the norm for British families. Spain continues to top the tables as the most popular overseas hotspot. While the upfront purchase cost is a huge financial commitment, the long-term benefits of holiday homes can be fantastic as they provide great investment potential, a wonderful lifestyle and a permanent escape from the hassle and expense of holiday arrangements. A holiday home can literally pay for itself.”

A British family has spoken of their lifestyle decision to move to Portugal but remain employed in the UK. Jo Wheeler and Richard Edwards said they felt life was becoming more stressful in the UK, prompting them to consider purchasing an overseas property and moving abroad.

The family decided to opt for their favourite holiday spot Portugal, as the country offered good weather, environment and a cheaper cost of living.

However, they also chose to stay in their original jobs back home, as they had both commuted between Cheshire and London anyway.

Ms Wheeler said in an interview to the Telegraph that they both realised that flying out from Portugal to the UK took roughly the same amount of time as their UK commute, leading them to consider this as a viable move. Initially they rented in Portugal until finding ‘a huge wreck’ with land and a pool in Luz near Lagos for less than the amount for which they had sold their Cheshire home. The children, reluctant at first to leave England, settled in quickly. The local school they found was tiny with just 70 pupils, and several expat children, so it made them very welcome.

She said: “We are now international people and our children have far more physical freedom and fun in the environment than at home.”

According to a study by Yorkshire Bank, 43 per cent of Britons are considering buying a place in the sun, mainly because of this year’s wet summer in the UK.

Luxembourg and Poland have the worst beaches, according to the European Commission’s annual beach report. Cyprus has the cleanest coastal beaches, scoring 99 percent compliance with the strictest standards, followed by Greece with 96 percent.

For fresh-water bathing sites Denmark (90 percent graded excellent), Estonia (82 percent), Germany (79 percent) and Austria (77 per cent) were best.

The report included information on 14,345 coastal and 6,749 inland bathing areas. Areas that met mandatory standards stood at 96 percent, similar to figures last year. The quality of freshwater sites increased slightly from last year to 89 percent.

Some 250 bathing sites were removed from the results for trying to cheat inspectors by masking pollution or artificially improving their scores.

Only seven of Luxembourg’s twenty swimming sites met EU’s standards. Inspections in the tiny Duchy had seen “no sign of improvement for a number of years”.

Poland also scored poorly. Of its 70 coastal bathing sites, 14 percent failed to meet minimum quality standards, while 17 percent failed similar standards for inland freshwater sites.

Britain rated 13th for beaches classed as excellent, just ahead of France but behind most beach holiday destinations in Europe. After Cyprus and Greece, Spain came in third place (93 percent of beaches classed as excellent), Italy 4th (91 percent) and Portugal 7th (90 percent).

European beaches are awarded coveted blue flags, as a measure of quality and safety if they meet stringent EU standards on everything from the cleanliness of the bathing water and lifeguard services, to how many litter bins are placed at the bathing sites.

Polish property is giving the best rate of return according to the Assetz quarterly investment tracker for the first quarter this year. This is as a result of capital gains on property on Poland climbing to 33%. Deposit levels start at 15%, making Poland a popular choice for investors at the moment.

Stuart Law, Managing Director of Assetz commented: “Poland looks set to lead the pack of emerging markets this year, with strong capital growth and excellent local demand as well as foreign investment. Warsaw’s property prices remain amongst the lowest in Europe and the introduction of major industry to the city is attracting an increasingly young and wealthy population. I expect to see continued strong growth and a flourishing rental market.”

Investors looking for a more traditional home for their money might still consider looking to the other side of the Channel. France’s continued popularity as a holiday destination is keeping the rental market healthy with yields of 7% and capital growth of 7.6%.

For the past 2 years Northern Cyprus has undergone a massive property boom, bringing a large number of potential problems. Hundreds of Brits are buying here attracted by property prices that can be up to 50 percent cheaper than in the south.

There is a large difference in the standard of living between Northern Cyprus and the rest of the island. In the south you can find smart shops, boutiques and many UK high street outlets. Northern Cyprus is still relatively underdeveloped.

Channel 4 ‘s Selling Houses Abroad looked last week at the dilemma of John and Pam who had bought an off-plan 3 bedroom flat in 2004 in Kyrenia in Northern Cyprus. The flat cost £55,000 and they have paid so far £38,000 in staged payments.

However, 3 years later the flat is still nowhere near completed and the development is progressing at a painfully slow rate. John and Pam have become frustrated at the delays.

Pam said, “We thought that we would buy now and it would be somewhere to come on holiday for months at a time and eventually for when we retire.”

Channel 4’s Andrew Winter advised that purchasing property in Northern Cyprus can be risky as land ownership is fiercely disputed in this area. The land disputes stem from the division of Cyprus in the 1970s when the country was partitioned into a Turkish north and a Greek south. Around 200,000 Greek Cypriots were displaced from the north to the south and around 65,00 Turkish Cypriots were displaced from the south to Northern Cyprus. As a result land ownership in Northern Cyprus is still strongly contested. Furthermore Northern Cyprus is not recognised as a legal entity by any country other than Turkey. In contrast, Southern Cyprus is part of the EU.

In 2004 the UN was hopeful of unification and this led to a surge in building developments in the north. However the UN’s proposals have stalled and many developers have abandoned their projects.

Andrew’s advice to John and Pam was to contact their solicitor and use the get out clause in their contract to obtain a refund as the builder has not completed the property within the contracted timeframe.

Until the land disputes have been resolved, the advice from Selling Houses Abroad is to think carefully before buying in Northern Cyprus and to ensure any property that you buy has no land dispute attached to it. Andrew said, “In new markets the rewards can be very high - 200 to 300 percent - but the losses can be high as well.”

Property in Croatia has been a good investment in recent years, with prices rising 20 percent per annum. An ever increasing number of Brits are buying in Croatia, keen to share in the boom.

Channel Four’s Selling Houses Abroad featured a warning last night, however, about the Croatian property market where corruption, the programme claimed, is widespread.

In 2003 Graham Thurston bought a 2,000 square metre (half an acre) plot of land by the sea just outside Dubrovnik for £85,000, hoping to build an apartment block to fund his pension. As a result of government red tape, however, he spent two-and-a-half years obtaining planning permission to build the apartments. While he was doing this Graham discovered he was not the legal owner of the land.

The man who sold the land to Graham did not have full legal title to it. Graham had used the legal services of the seller’s estate agent to check the land’s title. This was unwise. He should have used an independent solicitor to work on his behalf.

Kieran Kellaher, an Irishman who has worked as a property agent in Croatia for 14 years, recommended that in Eastern European countries you should employ the services of a high powered solicitor from the capital city when buying property. This avoids you having to deal with a local solicitor in towns and villages where everyone knows everyone else and the system may be worked to the disadvantage of outsiders.

A particular problem in Croatia (and potentially other eastern European countries) is that more people than just the seller may own title to a property. There may be children, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and a variety of other people who could enjoy part ownership of a property. No single person has the right to sell it. Kieran Kellaher believes that about one third of property coming to the market in Croatia could have unresolved issues lurking in the background, with the potential to catch out unwary buyers.

Fortunately, the intervention of Selling Houses Abroad seems to have brought about a satisfactory resolution for Graham Thurston. Graham was advised to register a dispute with the local planning office about the land’s ownership. This would enable him to block the land from being developed or sold and give him a strong negotiating position to recover some of his money. The Croatian owners then offered Graham 50 percent of the proceeds from selling the land.

Local agents say the land could now have a value of £320,000 so, fortunately for Graham, he still seems likely to make a profit from his adventure in Croatia – although much less profit than he should have made.