As you say, doubt many locals will buy but lots of Gulf nationals buy in Egypt as do Russians and Scandinavians (technically Europeans of course
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This is an interesting topic. I imagine there are very few resales happening at present except in the already establshed resort towns. Perhaps there is some flipping of contacts going on before completion but I expect much less than you think.
I believe there were approx 100 resales in El Gouna last year (about 5% of the housing stock and not dissimilar to what you would expect in a mature western housing market )and people have made good profits. This is why I believe resorts like El Gouna have a huge advantage for serious investors and lifestyle buyers as there is already a large resale market, many units are offerred for sale on the internet, prices are transparent, and the buyers are from a wide mix of nationalities. I believe about 50% of units in El Gouna are owned by Egyptians and for me this is a vital factor. A strong interest from the local wealthy buyers is a very good sign as they know local values better than us foreigners and will be around long after we are all gone. A lot of Egyptians aspire to buy in a place like EL Gouna - it is a status symbol as well as being a good investment
Buying in established locations like El Gouna where there is an established up market tourist market that is growing is more expensive initially but the rewards are larger in monetary terms and more certain. I would prefer to buy one 100k quality appartment in El Gouna that I know will rent well (See Queenie40's link somewhere on this forum for latest tourist stats for El Gouna which achieved over 1.5 million bed nights sold in 2007) and which has a good chance of doubling in value over 5 years than five 20k apparts in a poorer location in a not yet established resort. Cheap is usually cheap for a good reason and usually remains cheap. I think some buyers on this forum are interested in Egyptian property because it is within their price range but a lot of the product is of poor quality and will not be a good long term or short term investment.
My own White villa in El Gouna which I bought in 2005 is on paper worth considerably more than I paid but I want to keep and use it and I believe has the potential to be worth $1.5 million ($5,000 psm) within a few more years if El Gouna continues to develop as it is. When I buy an overseas property something I try to do is to picture who is going to buy it from me in a few years time and what could it conceivably be worth to that person all things considered- this allows me to filter out 99% of what I see because I cant picture the resale. If you cant really work out who is going to realistically buy your new appartment in a few years time when its built then dont buy it would be my advice.
So in Gouna for example I know that there is a finite supply of lagoon frontage property as the seawater lagoons can only be brought so far inland. The New golf project at El Gouna, Ancient Sands Golf Resort, which I am involved in will be the last large scale project at Gouna where seawater lagoons will be possible.
On the other hand I see a rapidly growing population and middle class and many of these people will want to buy lagoon frontage property at El Gouna specifically when they make enough money. Thats quite apart from the increasing number of foreigners interested in buying in Egypt, which may be a permanent (I Hope) or temporary influence.
So finite supply of a quality product and increasing numbers of potential purchasers both local (the most important) and foreigners equals inevitable price increases over the 5-10 year time horizon that I have.
