Investors looking to buy a ski property in Europe this season have been dealt a blow by the pound hitting a record low against the euro this week.

The euro climbed to 87.79p, building on a previous high of 87.73p. This is worrying news for would-be buyers from the UK who need to convert their money into euros. And the predictions from the experts are that it will get worse before it gets better. “There has been a marked decrease in the last three months, with the rate falling from €1.29 to €1.14 to the pound. It could go as low as €1.10 before Christmas,” says James Hickman, the managing director of the currency specialist Caxton FX.

So do people still want to invest in property in the eurozone? “Surprisingly, there is still a huge interest in the ski market throughout France, Austria and Switzerland,” Hickman says. But he admits that most sales are top-end. “Our average transaction is €400,000 to €500,000 for a property. As usual, this part of the market seems less affected by the current economic climate.”

Hickman acknowledges that the main concern for buyers is the decreasing value of the pound against the euro. To those who are still determined to invest in the European market he recommends that as soon as buyers have agreed a sale they should fix an exchange rate.

“This means whenever payments are due the rate will not change, no matter what the market is doing. This is a very sensible thing to do, considering the volatility of the pound,” he explains. Buying property abroad generally means that an initial deposit is paid once a sale has been agreed. Further payments may not be due for months, sometimes years, so if you do not fix your exchange rate the fluctuation in the currency market could be very costly. Hickman gives a cautionary scenario: “If you had agreed a sale on a property for €400,000 three months ago but were only paying for it at the current exchange rate, the property would cost you an extra £40,800 due to the fall in sterling. This means an increase of over 10 per cent in the property's value in just three months.”

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