Last week, the west African nation of Angola held its first legislative elections in 16 years - and only the second in the country's history. Importantly, the ruling MLPA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola) party's comprehensive victory at the polls were deemed by EU and African independent observers to be fair - a development which has led to rising confidence that a peace accord signed six years ago, following 27 years of civil war, is moving the country in the right direction.

The MLPA's victory owes much to the party's success in making the most of Angola's significant oil production - at two million barrels a day it is China's major supplier of oil - and transforming the country's economy. Angola's capital, Luanda, is said to have overtaken Tokyo to become the world's most expensive city, and its skyline stands in contrast to most other areas of the country, dominated as it is by brand new luxury condominium complexes.

But does all this mean the time is right to consider Angola as a suitable destination for long-term property investment?
Christopher Chadd, Head of Research at Property Frontiers, advises that a certain amount of caution needs to be taken with regards to Angola's property market.

"Angola is one of the poorest countries in the world, but has an incredible abundance of natural resources," he says. "GDP grew by 16.7 per cent last year and this year the figure is expected to remain around 15.1 per cent, with this growth primarily driven off the back of the oil sectors. This in turn is having dramatic effects on the price of property in Angola, particularly Luanda.

"Prime office space in Luanda is reaching £3,250 square metres and rents for prime residential apartments are just as incredible, with expatriate businessmen expecting to pay between $12,000 and $15,000 a month. Naturally, this is at the extreme end of the scale and is not a true representation of the property market in Angola. However, it does give you an idea of the effects of oil," he adds.

As far as the effect the recent elections will have on Angola's property market, Chadd believes it is very much a case of wait and see.

"It remains to be seen whether this [the election] will have an effect on the property market in Angola," he explains.

"Currently, Angola is ranked last in the world for the ease of doing business, the Angolan land titling process is very long and drawn out - with procedures taking on average 334 days to complete. Property registries in Angola are poorly organised so they provide little security of ownership. What we do know is that the elections should now start to provide stability in the economy; if the ruling government start to push through economic reform enabling property investments to be processed quicker and providing security in land titling, Angola could prove to be a very interesting market."

Angola's abundance of oil has prompted some countries to start investing in the African nation as a means of establishing cordial relations - understandable, considering experts are tipping Angola to soon surpass Nigeria as the African continent's largest supplier of oil.

"The Chinese, along with a couple of other nations, are investing billions and billions of dollars to help upgrade infrastructure in Angola, with new roads, property and railways currently under construction," continues Chadd.

"Luanda is awash with cranes and building sites as the government pumps money into the economy. Housing complexes for workers are being built all over the place and the construction industry is booming creating thousands of jobs for locals.

"Angola is a country to keep on your radar. It is most definitely a high risk-high reward investment and if you're willing to take a gamble then it may prove highly lucrative, although it is far too early to predict what affect the recent elections will have on the property market," he adds.

Whether Angola will fulfil all its potential is still uncertain at this early stage. As one member of the opposition party opined after being defeated in the election, it is one thing to build new schools, hospitals and the like, but it's quite another to adequately staff them.

However, for property seekers who like a gamble, few come bigger than investing in Angola. As Chadd says, though, the rewards could potentially be very high indeed.

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Article first published 18 September 2008