Property is a tangible asset - "an investment you can touch" - in a market that most investors know and understand. This gives a greater sense of control than leaving the responsibility for future financial provision to an anonymous fund manager in the City. The value of property can also be enhanced through changing or enhancing its features in some way. You also have the control of selling the property when you wish.

The other upside and beneficial difference with this type of investment is that, it is an investment that everybody wants at some stage of their life but is not always able to get. The benefits of owning International property far outweigh other forms of investment.

With the demise of final salary pension schemes, people are no longer guaranteed a comfortable income and therefore must depend on the value of their stock market-based investments which have fallen dramatically, and are consequently inadequate to support them in retirement.