Australia's House Prices Fall for the Third Straight Quarter

Property prices in Australia have fallen for three straight quarters due to increased borrowing costs, but there are signs this decline could be bottoming out as September marked the smallest price decline in seven months. Homes in capital cities fell by just 0.2% while regional home values increased by 0.1%, and experts think the trend of downward prices may be reversing.

House prices in capital cities have decreased by 4.2% this year while apartment prices have fallen by 1.4%, with Brisbane proving to be the worst performer so far this year, although all the signs are that it could be the first to see prices recover as home values increased by 0.4% in September.

Adelaide did even better with prices up by 0.5%, while more resilient markets such as the Sydney and Canberra saw the largest price declines with prices down by 0.6% and 0.5% respectively.

Economists are also hopeful that interest rates will be gradually reduced which could help to revive the first-time buyers' market, although most are predicting a recovery will come by the middle of next year. Another hopeful sign for the housing market is the fact that auction clearance rates are stable and there are less signs of discounting. Financing is also becoming easier.

The decline in house prices in Australia is certainly good news for all the Brits wanting to move to the country, as apparently the Overseas Guides Company has seen a 160% increase in the last quarter. Australia is seen as being particularly attractive as there is a skills shortage so certain professionals will find getting visas to live and work a relatively straightforward process.

Foreign Buyers in Singapore Increase by 16%

According to government figures, the number of foreigners owning private property in Singapore has increased by 16% during the first six months of this year, compared to an increase of just 12% for the whole of last year.

Some people are concerned that locals may be out priced by foreigners from the housing market, but the National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan has pointed out that locals still accounted for 80% of private home purchases this year.

The Singaporean government recently imposed cooling measures to try to prevent the market from overheating, and although these are already having an effect the full impact won't be felt for a while.

The rate of price increases in residential property is already slowing as prices have increased by 6% so far this year compared to the 18% recorded during last year.

The Singaporean government also intends to continue supplying sufficient land so housing developments can be built for those Singaporeans who wish to own their own homes. Last year the government released land for 10,000 units while this year it has released land for more than 14,500 units.

At the moment there are about 34,000 unsold private homes which is equivalent to 2 years of demand, but the government intends to keep up with their land sales program until the market stabilises, especially as it will be some time before the new supply is available. The government has also pledged to build more affordable housing and expects the country's supply of rental flats to reach 47,000 with an additional 3,000 units being added next year.

US Homebuyers Struggle to Find Their Dream Home

The US housing market is now encountering a new problem, as after years of oversupply in the market now has a dearth of attractive properties for sale.

At the end of September there were just over 2.19 million homes for sale, according to Realtor.com, which is a reduction of 20% on September 2010, and although on the face of it are falling inventory should be a good thing as it increases competition for suitable homes, the reality is slightly different.

Estate agents are finding people are pulling their homes off the market and are choosing to wait until prices recover. There are fewer foreclosures for sale as banks have been dragging their feet against foreclosing on properties ever since the controversy over irregularities surfaced last autumn, but demand remains soft and there is still a shadow supply of distressed property which is estimated at around 1 million.

These homes will gradually come onto the market over the next few years further constraining price gains. The decline in the number of properties the sale also means that less deals are being struck between buyers and sellers as buyers are cautious about paying too much while sellers feel they may be underpricing their homes.

In September housing inventory is for Miami were down 49% compared to a year ago, while in Phoenix this figure was 48%. Tampa, Florida has seen a reduction of 33% and Atlanta has seen a fall of 30%, while in Detroit this figure is 28%. While some homeowners are still looking for their dream home, others have given up completely, and property experts think this shortage of attractive, well priced homes is affecting sales more than sluggish demand.

Oman Property Market Is Doing Well, Buoyed up by Economy

The property market in Oman is doing pretty well according to a new survey from Cluttons. This is mainly due to the recovering economy and high oil prices, and the private sector has employed 20.7% more people between 2008 and 2010, leading to increased demand for properties.

Oman was hit by the global recession, but now the economy is expected to recover nicely, and government income has grown by 29% during the first six months of this year.

Much of this increase in revenue is down to rising oil prices, but good employment figures show the economy is in a relatively healthy state.

Demand for residential property in the Muscat region has remained steady, and it is anticipated this demand will rise as the economy continues to strengthen. Established areas such as Madinat Qaboos and Qurum are still very popular, and coastal areas such as Ghubrah North and Azaiba are becoming increasingly more attractive due to a number of new developments in recent years.

The Cluttons report is predicting a two tier property market will develop, with well-designed properties showing relatively high occupancy rates and stable rental values, while those properties which are less well built and designed will show a decline in occupancy rates and rental values.

Those properties which are well-designed with high quality amenities are in high demand and tenants would rather choose a smaller higher quality property than a less well built property in a better area. All in all the report is quite positive about the outlook for residential property in Oman, but does comment that it is still heavily dependent upon oil revenue for its main income.

Construction Spending Unexpectedly Rises in the US, but the Housing Market Remains Flat

Spending on construction rose in August due to an increase in state and local government spending, giving a 1.4% gain which reversed the 1.4% loss in July. The construction industry is also up 1.4% compared to July 2010 which is its first positive reading of the year.

Building of multi-family homes such as townhouses and apartments has increased, which is greater evidence of how the housing market has changed as more Americans are choosing to rent rather than buy. Even so, spending on public construction was down 5.3% compared to August 2010 which is mainly due to budget cuts.

The housing market continues to struggle, and work began on 571,000 new homes in August which is the weakest figure for three months. Most experts don't expect the housing market to improve in the near future, and purchases of new homes reached a six-month low in August even though prices fell by an average of 7.7% compared to August 2010 which is the largest fall since July 2009. The problem is that distressed properties still appear far more tempting to potential buyers.

The Federal Reserve is aiming to cut borrowing costs and to kick start housing and refinancing, and last month it announced it would take additional steps to reinvest maturing mortgage debt into mortgage backed securities instead of Treasuries. However government agencies remain under pressure to cut their spending, especially as property tax collections which is the main source of income for many cities and counties fell by 1.2% during the second quarter, which is the third consecutive decline.

Norwegian Homes Are the Greenest in the World

Research by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors has shown that Norway is the top country in the world for reducing carbon emissions in the built environment. Brazil is second, while the UK comes in third, but apparently there is still considerable room for improvement. Australia and China come in fourth and fifth, but Russia Luxembourg and Canada are bottom of the list, with Greece and South Africa just above them.

Although the bottom of the list shows little movement, there has been considerable change in the middle ranking is. Between 2008 and 2010, Finland, Sweden, France, the USA, Belgium and the Slovak Republic have made improvements, while India, Italy and Ireland have slipped further down the rankings.

The RICS Global Zero Carbon Capacity Index has looked at 34 individual countries over the last three years to see how they are progressing in their carbon reduction policies.

The UK has a considerable number of carbon reduction policies in place which accounts for its high ranking in the index, but doesn't do so well in the residential sector where it remains one of the worst performers, although it is gradually improving. Norway has been top of the ranking for three years running, but Brazil has moved up six places due to its high contribution of renewable energy and low energy use. In contrast,

Germany has slipped down the rankings due to its poor performance in residential energy use and is now the fifth worst performer. This particular index has remained pretty stable from year to year due to the lead time and investment required in renewable energy infrastructure to make any appreciable difference to a country's energy use.

Home Sales in California Increase in August

The number of home sales in California increased by 8.8% in August compared to July, and by 10.2% compared to August 2010, and all in all an estimated 37,734 homes were sold throughout the state.

The average number of sales for August is 48,344 according to DataQuick who has been keeping statistics since 1988. Sales reached an all-time low in 1992 with just 29,764 homes being sold and an all-time high of 73,285 in 2005.

The median price for a Californian home was $249,000 in August, a decrease of 1.2% compared to July, and a decrease of 4.2% on August 2010. House prices have decreased for 11 months in a row after 11 months of increases.

The lowest price for this housing cycle was recorded in April 2009 when prices were just $221,000, compared to the peak in early 2007 of $484,000, and property prices are still being affected by the large number of distress sales which accounted for more than 50% of the resale market in August.

Foreclosures accounted for 34.6% of existing house sales last month, down from 35.6% in August 2010. The highest recorded figure for foreclosures was in debris 2009, at 58.5%. Shop sales accounted for 17.8% of resales in August, down from 18% in August 2010.

Homebuyers are also taking out smaller mortgages, as the typical mortgage payment for August was just $982, which is the lowest amount on record, down from $1045 in August 2010. This is a massive 64.4% less than the peak of the current cycle which was reached in June 2006.