Making the right overseas property purchase means approaching it in the right frame of mind. Here SCOTT HUGGINS offer his exclusive tips on how to get the right deal.

HE'S the man in the know - and for those about to spend on a foreignproperty he is a handy partner to have - but just how did Scott Huggins get in the position to help all those aspiring overseas homeowners?

"It's the old story," said Scott. "I was in the right place at the right time! My co-presenter in Get a New Life was asked if she knew of any chaps in the industry with whom she had a good rapport. She recommended me."

While he has invested in overseas property and will do again, Scott has not settled abroad apart from a ski season in The Alps and a passport heavily stamped when he was in his twenties. It is the Alps that represent his dream location.

"My absolute dream home would be a very well converted 200-year-oldfarmhouse in the Alps. It would ideally be located away from the village up a little track with fantastic views of the valley and hills," said Scott who at the moment lives in South West London.

Funnily, for all the properties he's seen, the great countries offeringfabulous opportunities, Britain has much to offer him.

"I actually love the UK. Ok, the weather is a bit drab at times but on the whole, we have a great deal going for us in this country. I just wish more people would become involved in their local communities," he said.

"It is that apathy that makes me look abroad sometimes. My dream is to have an escape in several places: the Alps would be number one but hot on the heels comes Tuscany, the Caribbean, South Africa and on a beach in Thailand. I guess I am a bit of a nomad."

That noted, while Scott can go misty-eyed as he dreams of those places, he has a reputation for being a cool customer when it comes to property deals. That's more than most people who when faced with buying somewhere in an exotic location often get carried away.

They shouldn't. Money and research are the heart and soul of the deal. "I'm a rare beast when it comes to property. I am virtually devoid of emotion," said Scott. "Don't get me wrong, I get excited about property but I never forget the numbers. They must stack up.

"I was pitched to by a developer who was constructing a lovely building in Sydney. It was aimed at the 'buy-to-let' investor. However, their numbers meant that you were guaranteed to make an annual loss on the property, given the expected rent and cost of capital. The developers then spent the whole hour explaining why this was a good thing and that, so long as the price ofthe property continued to rise by seven per cent or more per annum, I would still make money due to tax breaks - balderdash!

"No-one can predict with 100 per cent confidence what a market is going to do and if prices start to drop, you need to cover your outgoings from rent received. It's as simple as that. I ended up walking out of the room as I have little time for 'get rich schemes'. From my observations, the only person who gets rich is the seller."

And talking of 100 percent sure bets where does he think the next boomplaces will be? "China, India, South Africa, all the countries still lining up to join the EU - Turkey, Bulgaria etc and some more obscure ones like Costa Rica, St Lucia and St Vincent. Maybe even Iraq in years to come. Some of the recent new members of the EU are all right but others are definitely overcooked," he said.

Scott worked in property on the London Stock Exchange before leaving tocreate his own property management company in 1989. "After a while I got disillusioned with the City," said Scott. "Working on the Stock Exchange you have to learn about the stocks and shares you're dealing in, so while my knowledge wasn't in depth, I got to know the property market in the UK quite well."

Through running his letting agency, Scott often discovered undervaluedproperties with high rental yields and decided to add them to his increasing portfolio, which included his own three-bedroom home bought when he was 18.

"Two years after I bought the house it had doubled in value to £67, 000," he said. "Being a City trader I was concerned about large increases in a relatively short period of time, so I decided to sell. Six months later similar properties in my area were only worth £50,000."

But then of course for every success is the one that got away. As Scott will admit: "The biggest mistake I have made is not buying a particular property, rather than actually buying. I was offered an apartment is the resort of Val D' Isère for £25,000 during the last property slump in 1991.

"I turned it down as I did not want to overstretch myself. That place is now worth an estimated £300,000. Having said that, you cannot put a price on peace-of-mind. That is what I chose over potential profit in that particular deal."

For a man who says he has moved on average once a year during his adult life that might be considered a big miss. But he is aiming to rectify that by building up a portfolio of properties in exotic locations.

Scott's Top Tips:

Seek independent advice. Meet local experts face to face before you even step foot in any property to potentially buy. Just make sure your advice is truly independent.

As a general rule, I would advise anyone moving abroad to rent somewhere for at least a year before they buy - maybe even rent two different places in two different locations - six months in each. You may think that rent is money wasted but the difference between rent paid and the interest-only element of any mortgage is minimal. That difference is a small price to pay for allowing yourself research and thinking time on one of the biggest decisions you ever make - buying the family home.

The biggest single mistake that I see, time and time again, is not getting adequate independent expert advice. A local lawyer who speaks English well is worth their weight in gold (or bricks!). Without this single person on your team, you stand every chance of being 'had'. They will look out for your interests, not the interests of the vendor. This is especially true if you are buying off-plan and are recommended the builder's own lawyers.

DO NOT use them - period!

Other mistakes are many-fold, and nearly all stem from greed. I have heard horror stories of people buying things over the Internet without ever having been to the country, let alone view the property. When they eventually get there, they have a nightmare scenario facing them: the 'rustic' farmhouse' is an old disused shed on the edge of the mucking-out barns, it looks like a Jenga game in progress or is in a position so that, had you been aware (which you never are from the pictures), you would never have bought it. You know the sort of thing: overlooking the local tip etc.

If you are the sort of person who will happily live in a foreign country and not bother to learn the local language, then you are the sort of person who should not go in the first place! You will be back, after a period of time, because you will fail to integrate with the local community.

If that sounds like you, choose a country where the majority of people speak adequate English: old colonies, some parts of Spain and a multitude of other countries whose population generally speaks English (the Netherlands, all of Scandinavia etc). Still, in every country where English is not the first language, people will really appreciate your efforts to use their lingo, however comical or incomprehensible!