Property sales rise in cyprus

The number of property transactions in Cyprus rose year-on-year by 5% in 2010, new figures have shown. A report by the Department of Lands and Surveys found that the total number of properties switching hands rose to 8,598, driven by a 14% rise in sales in Nicosia and a 10% increase in the city of Limassol.

Andreas Christophorides, managing director of Christophorides and Associates, told Bloomberg that a further recovery in the first half of this year was, however, "unlikely". He added: "The market may recover in the second half of 2011 but the process will be tentative."

A total of 1,593 homes in Cyprus were sold to foreigners in the first 10 months of 2010, according to a report in A Place in the Sun.