Some experts say that Maltese property can be referred to as a solid investment, and its types give the best ROI. It’s economy is one of the Europe’s fastest growing. It faced rather quick economic growth in 2014 and 2015. It showed as almost about 8% of annual growth till 2016. However, this growth slowed a little bit (to 5%) in 2016.

This is true according the figures from the Central Bank of Malta (CBM) which is now promoting price stability in euro area while actively participating in the preparation and decision-making process of the Eurosystem’s monetary policy.

Malta’s economic state
Malta’s recent economic growth surpassed experts’ projection of 4% as its economy had expanded by 3.2% (GDP growth rate) on an annual basis from 2005-2008, then contracted in 2009 by 2.4% and bounced back in 2010, when the GDP growth rate was 3.5%, then in 2011 – it was 1.8%, in 2012 – it was 2.8%, in 2013 – it was 4.5%, and in 2014 – it was 2% as the country’s fiscal deficit narrowed to around 1.4% of GDP in 2015.

The data which can be found about Maltese property market shows that real estate prices surged almost by 14% during the last quarter of 2016. Property prices rose by 7.24% during the fourth quarter of the last year (2016).

Malta labor market
Country’s labor market also reflects its economic state as well as its government’s efforts to boost national economy by raising labor market participation. Country’s employment rate in 2016 rose to 66.1% from 63.9% as it was last year. Unemployment rate was very low, about 4.1%. Annual inflation rate in February 2017 was merely low 1.2%.

Real estate market prices by property types
In such a way house price rises were experienced by all property types. For example, apartments had a double increase in price during the last quarter of 2016. They were up by 14.99%. Terrace houses experienced price surge of 13.33% the same year. Townhouses, villas and houses of character had not so large price growth of around 1.96% in 2016.

However, the highest price growth was experienced by marionettes which pieces rose by almost 21% over the same year. This was stated by the Individual Investor Program introduced by the government in the frames of its November 2013 budget.

Observations of Malta’s real estate market
According to words of RE/MAX Malta’s managing director Kevin Buttigieg, country’s real estate market is quite buoyant, despite the high prices there are all sorts of purchases being made on a daily basis: commercial investments, direct foreign investments, property investments during allocation of residency permits in the framework of IIP Citizenship Scheme etc.

However, there are still many restrictions on real estate ownership in Malta as EU citizens and foreign nationals can usually buy only one property in the country (several in specially designated areas like Chambray, Cottoenra, Manoel Island, Portomaso and Tigne Point).

Maltese real estate market’s past experiences
There was a strong growth in 2000-2007 witnessed by the experts as well as by non-professionals in the Maltese property market. The overall house price index rose by 78.9% while there was also a price increase observed of terraced houses – 105.3%, maisonettes – 81.4%, apartments – 83.3%, townhouses and villas – 71.9%.

House prices continued to rise from 2005 till 2007. In 2008 the country was under the influence of global financial crisis of 2008 as it is dependent on tourism and foreign trade. A 2.13% contraction was experienced in 2009 by the country. After the recovery of 2011, real estate prices fell by 2.2% in 2012. This period was followed by Maltese government launching new property-related measures. The prices continued to grow also in the 2014-2016.

Factors influencing property price growth
This program targets high net worth individuals. There were several reasons for housing demand such as growth in disposable income, increased number of foreign workers in Malta and low interest rate, leading to higher lending for house purchases.

Malta’s 2017 property bubble
However, country’s 2017 budget has rather favorable opportunities to potential property buyers by providing a subsidy of 100,000 euros on expenses related to of immovable property restoration which is located within an Urban Conservation Area. A tax rate of 7% was also imposed on the value of all inherited property transfers by means of a judicial sale by auction.

The lending rate on new mortgages was at 2.77% in January 2017 (before joining the Euro in January 2008, country’s mortgage borrowing rates were from 4-5% and above), housing lending rates surged to 3%. March 2016 Global Property Guide research showed that country’s rental yields are moderate. They range from 4.35% to 4.49%. In accordance with Malta’s National Statistics Office (NSO) the prices were rising from 2012 till 2015 as there were an increasing number of foreign workers in the country, choosing to live in rented places of accommodation.

According to the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) the rise in dwelling permits was also seen as they rose up to 67.7%, apartment permits accounted for 35.9%, maisonettes rose by 13.8% and other property types – 17.4%.

The total population of Bolivia is 11,215,674 people. The people of Bolivia speak the Spanish, Uru, Aymara and Puquina languages. The linguistic diversity of Bolivia is vaguely diverse according to a fractionation scale, which is 0.224 for Bolivia. The average age is about 23.4 years. Life expectancy in Bolivia is 68. Female fertility rate in Bolivia is 3.2. Around 18% of the population of Bolivia is obese. Ethnic diversity is quite diverse according to a fractionation scale, which for Bolivia is 0.7396. Details of the language, religion, age, gender distribution and advancement of the people of Bolivia can be found in the sections below, as well as the section on education in the country.

Population
In Bolivia, the population density is 9.46 people per square kilometer (25 per square mile). Based on these statistics, this country is considered very sparsely populated. The total population of Bolivia is 11,215,674 people. Bolivia has approximately 154,330 foreign immigrants. Immigrants in Bolivia make up 0.1 percent of the total number of immigrants worldwide. Immigrants in Bolivia make up 1.4 percent of the total number of immigrants worldwide. The ethnic diversity of Bolivia is quite diverse according to a fractionation scale based on ethnicity. Ethnic Fractionation (EF) deals with the number, size, socioeconomic distribution, and geographic location of diverse cultural groups, usually within a state or some other demarcated area. Specific cultural characteristics can refer to language, skin color, religion, ethnicity, customs and traditions, history, or other distinctive criteria, alone or in combination. These characteristics are often used for social exclusion and power monopolization. The index of ethnic fractionation in Bolivia is 0.7396. This means that there is a relatively high number of unique ethnic groups in Bolivia. EF is usually measured as 1 minus the Herfindahl concentration index of ethnolinguistic group proportions, which reflects the probability that two randomly drawn individuals from the population belong to different groups. The theoretical maximum of EF of 1 means that each person belongs to a different group. Below you will find statistics for Bolivia on the average age and gender distribution at different ages.

Old
The average age is about 23.4 years. The average age of men is 22.6 years and the average age of women is 24.1 years.

Gender
The sex ratio, or number of males per female (estimated at birth), is 1.05. It can be further broken down into the following categories: sex ratio below 15 - 1.04; sex ratio from 15 to 64 - 0.96; sex ratio over 64 - 0.79; Overall sex ratio - 0.98. The overall sex ratio differs from the sex ratio estimated at birth. This is because some newborns are included in the sex ratio estimated at birth, but die within the first few weeks of life and are not included in the overall sex ratio.

Religion
The majority religion in Bolivia is Christianity, whose adherents make up 93.9% of all religious believers in the country. Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ as presented in the New Testament. Christianity is the largest religion in the world with over 2.4 billion followers known as Christians. Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the Savior of mankind, whose coming as Christ or Messiah was prophesied in the Old Testament. In addition to Christianity, there are some followers of folk religions in Bolivia. Bolivia's religious diversity is vaguely diverse according to a fractionation scale based on the number of religions in Bolivia. The index of religious fractionation in Bolivia is 0.2085. This score means that within the country there is a major belief with a few other subordinate beliefs.

Given that within the European Union there are no withholding taxes on IP royalties between member states, we can suggest a number of countries where royalties are particularly beneficial.

CYPRUS
The intellectual property royalties tax regime in Cyprus has changed as a result of the recommendations of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Action Report 5 and the Ecofin Council conclusions published on 8 December 2015. Legislation has been changed to limit the companies that can benefit from research and development (R&D) exemptions, but the tax rate in Cyprus is still one of the most favorable in the EU for foreign companies using Cyprus intellectual property want to license -resident companies (intermediaries), where this right is then sub-licensed to the end user. Overall, the effective tax on IP royalty income should be less than 2.5%.

IRELAND
In 2015 Ireland introduced an effective corporation tax rate of 6.25% on intellectual property income based on an allowance for research and development costs borne by the company. By linking the two components in this way, Irish law encourages companies to conduct R&D directly within the EU - leading to the creation of intellectual property - while discouraging them from acquiring licenses without directly committing to R&D.

BELGIUM
Belgium has introduced a tax system that favors those with income from acquired copyrights. This tax regime can have many different applications and can be used to protect artworks as well as a useful tax break for IT developers. Income from IP rights royalties is taxed at 15%. This income is not taken into account when calculating social security contributions. In addition, these taxes are reduced by 50% for imports due to the application of standard import costs. The first €15,000 that a copyright owner earns in a year is therefore taxed at 7.5%, and the next €15,000 at 11.25%. This tax system applies to people with a total annual income of up to 56,450 euros.

THE NETHERLANDS
Since 2010, IP income has been taxed at only 5% in the Netherlands. Except for patents, there is no income limit. Patent holders can actually have access to this tax regime if their share of the expected revenue is between 30% and 70%, taking into account the total combined revenue from patents and other sources. These rates also apply to foreign companies owning intangible assets or companies that have received research and development accreditation from the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs if they are owners of software IP or trade secrets. The only other caveat to this favorable tax regime is that it doesn't apply to marketing and branding-related assets.

LUXEMBOURG
In general, corporate tax in Luxembourg is 29.22%, but for IP licensing income it can be as low as 5.8%. This is due to an 80% corporate income tax exemption. Interestingly, this exemption also applies to companies that have registered a patent for use in connection with their own business, which then calculate a notional net income as if they had received the licensing income.

ITALY
Italy is a larger market compared to the other countries discussed and can be a very attractive place for a company to invest in R&D since 2015 companies have been able to deduct intellectual property income from their taxable income base. The tax deduction was set at 30% in 2015, 40% in 2016 and 50% from 2017. Businesses will therefore enjoy a significant tax rebate by reducing their taxable income.