Where would you get a five-bedroom house with three bathrooms, two garages, irrigated lawn and screened pool for £112,000?

Not in Ballsbridge, Howth, Dalkey, west Cork, Galway or most other parts of the country. However, if you are able for the tropical heat, occasional hurricane and sandy beaches of Florida, then such an offer might be open to you.

This bargain, for a property just outside Orlando, was just one of those offered at last weekend's Homes Overseas Exhibition at the RDS where almost 60 property companies exhibited before large crowds of hungry investors looking for post-Bacon deals.

Those in attendance, more used to the Republic's elevated property prices, were stunned to find large luxury properties, particularly in Spain, going at prices which in Dublin would scarcely be enough for a garden shed.

While some of those attending the exhibition simply refused to believe the prices, others realised that the Republic's property market is the one out of step, not markets elsewhere.

According to Jason Higgs, of HD International Properties which specialises in Spain, the Algarve and Florida, there are several differences between the Irish property scene and other markets.

"The land availability in these locations is very different compared to Ireland and the population structure is different too, which has an impact on the demand there," he said.

The Irish investor is relatively new to the overseas property game and his German and British rivals have spent the past decade and more building up a large stock of overseas property. However, in the past few years several factors - not least the general economic boom in the Republic - have prompted the Irish investor into the market.

The post-Bacon legislation which means that since April investors cannot write-off rental income against tax, has meant they are looking for other opportunities.

Most of the attention at the exhibition was on Spain, where there is tremendous value at present, according to Diarmaid Condon, of DNE Real Estate/IPC, which offers properties in the Costa del Sol (Marbella and Mijas), Costa Blanca north and south and southern Tenerife.

He says most Irish investors buy in the £50,000 to £150,000 bracket and he would not advise anyone to purchase anything below £40,000. "There are very few good properties below that level and it would be a big risk to take on," he said.

Despite this, he points out there is no shortage of £40,000 and upwards properties available in good Spanish locations. For example, DNE/IPC's price list shows three-bed bungalows in Playas de Orihuela going for £41,156 or two-bed apartments in Orihuela going at £43,396.

Marbella tends to be more expensive, with DNE/IPC offering a two-bed townhouse beside Santa Maria Golf and Country Club for £91,226.

A two bed-apartment on Marbella's White Pearl Beach area will set you back £117,925. A three-bed apartment in the prestigious Greenlife Village complex comes with a £206,604 price tag.

Rental income is important. In Spanish terms, most exhibitors agreed that Tenerife is the strongest area for rents. The rental season in is usually longer than other areas. Mr Condon cites a one bedroom apartment in the Castle Harbour development in Tenerife, where total rent over an 11-month period would be £10,259, which after fees, electricity, rates and sundries should leave £8,843.

Prices are going up at an alarming rate in Tenerife, he adds, with one-bed apartments often costing £70,000.

He adds that 95 per cent's of DNE/IPC's properties are golf related, as this normally means longer rental periods during the year. Getting a Spanish lawyer is advised.

One regular horror story occurs after almost half of the purchase is paid and the builder decides not to finish the job and is declared bankrupt. One way around this is to get a bank guarantee which ensures that you get all your money back if the whole property is not completed.

Philip Murphy, director of Prestige Villas, says the purchase price shouldn't be seen as involving just one person necessarily. "Two golfers with £15,000 each can buy a decent property for £30,000 and stop paying for hotels for their rest of their days," he says.

His company has noticed a large increase in business since the Government implemented the Bacon report, with many of his customers buying large properties, some of them costing more than £1 million.

At HD International Properties there was a lot of interest in its portfolio of properties in Florida. Situated close to Disneyworld, Jason Higgs says the houses may not appreciate annually in the same way as in Spain, but achieve longer rental periods on the back of the 43 million people who visit the state each year.