Boost your Home Value: 7 Cheap Tips

Whether you want to boost your home value because you’re selling or just for the heck of it, one thing usually comes to mind: cost. How much will it cost to get my home value up and will the improvements be enough to boost my selling price? If you’ve got lots of money, great, you can renovate the whole thing to increase your home value, add another bedroom and bathroom, get all new appliances, replace the siding etc. Those are the major (and costly) things you can do to increase your home value.

Most of us however, are on a budget, especially when it comes time to move to a new home. There are a few cheap tricks you can use to help increase your home value without putting a huge dent in your savings.

1. USE your real estate agent! Technically, they don’t get paid till you actually sell your home, but they will wind up making quite a bit of money off you, so put them to work! Have them do a walk through of the home and point out things that may affect your home value. They are the experts after all and can tell you what kind of things will boost your value the most. Some improvements can actually detract from the value of your home, but a real estate professional can give you hints on what to work on and what to leave along.

2. Focus on your kitchen – it still tends to be the heart of the home and potential buyers usually check it out first when viewing a home for sale. For a couple hundred dollars, you can certainly spruce of the kitchen to increase your home value: spring for new sink faucets, repair any squeaky or off-track drawers and cabinets, replace old and worn cabinet handles, etc. If you’re really handy, you can even refinish the cabinets yourself.

3. Check out your floors and walls – if your hard wood floors are scuffed, buff ‘em. If your carpets are stained, get them professionally cleaned. If your walls are scuffed or paint is chipped, re-paint them if necessary, or just wash them! A Mr. Clean Magic Eraser can go a long way to cleaning up walls. It’s not always good to outright replace flooring or carpeting or paint your walls, as some potential buyers want to be able to do their own renovations to a home they purchase.

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4. Be sure to replace anything that is broken, or just looks old and decrepit. Not only does this help maintain your home value, but it shows buyers that the home is maintained and well cared for. This includes doorknobs, light fixtures, light switches handles, etc.

5. Bathrooms are another important feature buyers tend to look at, and which can definitely affect your home value. You can spruce it up relatively cheaply by replacing the old floor with new easy-to -apply vinyl flooring – you don’t even have to take up the old floor, just install the new floor right on top of the old one. You can replace worn or cracked toilet seats, re-grout the tile and even replace an old sink with a pedestal sink for a relatively low price. Fixing up the bathrooms of your home is a great way to up its value.

6. Possibly the most important and overlooked aspect of raising your home value and getting a buyer will to pay market price is CLEANLINESS! Before even thinking about showing your home, you should do a THOROUGH scrub down, from top to bottom. Trash extra clutter, sweep and vacuum floors, dust EVERYTHING, clean ceiling fans, window sills, wash the drapes, dust the furniture, get into every crevice of your house. While just cleaning may not do a whole lot to raise the home value, it does go a long way to getting the home SOLD. Buyers want a home that is relatively clean to move into – no one wants to spend their first day in a new home thoroughly disinfecting everything.

7. Last, but DEFINITELY not least is focusing on curb appeal. Once you’ve done everything you can to the inside of the home, it’s time to step out front. A poorly maintained and junky lawn can not only decrease your home value, it will also discourage potential buyers from even taking a look inside the home. Landscaping is an important consideration when you are deciding to purchase a new home. Get your hands dirty by cleaning up any junk and trash you have littering the outside of your house. Prune the hedges and trees, mow the lawn and clean away any dead plant life. If your lawn has bald spots or dead grass, consider either planting shrubbery there or laying grass seed. When it comes to the outside of your home, a little effort can go a long way!

Those are just a few relatively cheap and easy ways to increase your home value. Of course, it all goes back to number one – using your real estate agent to determine what improvements will be the most beneficial to boosting your home value and getting your home sold faster. Of course, if you’re just looking to improve your home and not necessarily sell anytime soon, you may not have a real estate agent, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use one! Real estate agents are ALWAYS looking for potential business and therefore usually willing to help out what could be potential clients. Even if you won’t be selling for another 3 years, start shopping around for an agent to do a walk through of your home and give you some advice. That doesn’t mean you have to list with them! (But they don’t need to know that.)

You can also take advantage of websites that will give you a free home value report, and many of those sites will actually connect you with a local real estate professional. Take advantage of that by having the agent come out, look at your home and give you some more advice on increasing your home value!

WSFL News Update 10/18/11 6.59p SFL Home Values Flat, Prices Falling
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Ten reasons Spanish property prices will stay depressed

Although all I can see is continuing property pain in Spain, I keep reading suggestions that now is the time to snap up a bargain.  In fact at every stage of the crash there has been no shortage of property insiders talking up the market:

“We have again an increased demand, we do not have an oversupply . . those buying today will be judged to have been the smartest buyers”.  [Viva Estates April 2007]

“It is an exciting time in Spain, it’s a buyer’s market and quite frankly, it’s never been better.” [Mediter Real Estate February 2008]

“it is currently a good time to buy in Spain” [Beatriz Corredor, Spanish Housing Minister June 2008]

“now is a very favourable time to purchase in Spain” [spanishpropertyclub.org.uk September 2008]

“Experts say this is a good time to buy in Spain because property prices have dropped on average by 20 per cent” [Sunday Mail  January 2009]

“Now is the time to buy in Spain . . . I predict that the overall market in Spain and in its coastal provinces will recover in due course to even greater values, undreamed-of at the height of the previous boom.” [Almanzora, developer May 2009]

So after years of false and dangerous optimism is now the time to buy? Here are my 10 reasons to doubt it.

UK house prices are seeing a tentative recovery but the UK’s strict planning laws have kept the supply of new property tight whereas in Spain the opposite is true.   There are estimated to be 900,000 unsold completed dwellings weighing down the market with many more unfinished constructions.  The problem is growing: during the first of the year twice as many new builds were completed as were sold.

As in the UK repossessed properties are adding to market woes and this drag on prices is set to worsen. The Spanish paper Expansion reported recently that “one in five households are at a high risk of default” and that banks are “preparing a for a second wave of defaults from the Autumn” because of unemployment.   Repossessed properties are often sold cheaply at auction or using websites owned by the banks like Caixa Catalunya’s www.procam-inmobiliaria.com.

High unemployment is likely to weigh on both the Spanish and UK housing markets for a while.  It’s hard to see the market for Spanish property rising to “undreamed of” levels with unemployment approaching 20%.   Spain’s unemployed are paying the price for an economy overly geared towards construction and many jobs lost in construction and estate agency will never return.   It’s hard to see unemployment falling sharply with tourism suffering and a social security system that actively discourages  job creation.

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As in the UK mortgages remain hard to come by as banks rebuild their balance sheets and remain wary of lending to all but those with perfect credit.  It’s hard to see a sustained recovery without the return of the “normal” buyers who don’t have 30% deposits to put down. Would-be buyers often fall foul of highly conservative valuations by the banks. Under the headline “Tricks and Mortar” The Economist described how the Bank of Spain has allowed the banks to hide €22bn of bad loans suggesting that they are not about to return to full health any time soon.

Even with normal credit conditions there are other reasons to doubt that Spain can shrug off the property crash at least in coastal areas popular with foreign buyers.  The perception that owning a property in Spain is a sun-drenched dream has been buried by:

>Estate agents’ hype prior to the crash (see above).  Who will ever believe that Spanish property is a rock-solid investment again?

>Illegal build scandals in Andalucia and Murcia may be resolved without all the affected homes being bulldozed but the damage to reputation has been done.

>Valencia’s “Land Grab” laws which have tainted all Costas by association.

>Bankrupt promotors have left a trail of broken promises to those that bought offplan, not to mention many half-built and badly maintained developments

As I write sterling is at €1.17, much better than its nadir of than €1.03 in January, but a far cry from the €1.40 to €1.50 range that used to make Spanish property seem so attractive.  Can the pound recover further? I don’t know but I wouldn’t bet on it while UK government borrowing is spiralling out of control.

Many of the industry’s boosters say that because Spanish prices have fallen they must now be bargains.  This is not necessarily true because prices in most countries that attract British buyers have also fallen.  For example in Dubai the investment bank EFG-Hermes said recently that they expect a drop of 50-60% from the 2008 peak.  As for Florida prices have been falling steadily for 3 years; Irish broker Jack French has 2 bed condos in Orlando from 50,000€, a 75% discount.  Prices in former hotspots in Eastern Europe such as Bulgaria are described as being in meltdown.

It might help us see light at the end of the tunnel if we could rely on reported statistics but the old cliché “lies, damned lies . ..” rings all too true in the world of Spanish property.  The main government (INE) and private (TINSA) indices show prices falling 7-10% from the peak but property writer Mark Stucklin says “in reality, the index has to be taken with a pinch of salt”.  A further problem is promotors and other sellers failing to reduce their advertised prices putting the onus on buyers to negotiate “discounts” which does little for market transparency or confidence.

Some agents have reported increasing numbers of enquiries latterly but these claims should be treated with caution for a number of reasons:

>they are made by Estate Agents!  Is it really true, as Dreamhomes Worldwide claim on their website that “there is definitely no shortage of clients in search of properties on the Costa del Sol”?

>the crash has forced many agents out of business so the surviving agents should be getting more enquiries, other things being equal

>how many “buyers” are actually just looking?  Completed transactions are the real test and these are still showing double digit year on year falls in most areas.

The industry is able to get away with its propaganda about “bargains” and “undreamed of” price rises in the future because the property boom mentality is deeply ingrained in the British and Spanish collective psyches.  We have become used to a cyclical pattern with higher and higher peaks following periodic busts with seeming inevitability.  There is every reason to believe that this time will be different and that we have reached the end of a super boom in property and asset values generally.

To understand why you have to look at the reason previous busts have rebounded to begin new booms.  The pattern has always been the same – governments have slashed interest rates to boost consumer demand, reflate asset prices and end the recession.  The trouble is that this policy has left households more and more indebted to the point where they can’t afford to take on any more debt even with very low interest rates.  I believe we have reached the limit of debt-fueled growth in Spain, Britain and most of the Western economies.  Any recovery we see this year will be artificial or phoney, built on the back of public sector debt which is not a sustainable source of growth nor likely to trigger a new private sector boom.

If you are being tempted by all the talk of recovery and bargains I would advise caution.  There is no rush.  Take time to observe the market making sure that you are reading unbiased opinion and facts not manipulative propaganda from industry insiders posing as experts.  A good place to look is spanishpropertyinsight.com which I have found to be a rare source of independent information on the Spanish property market.  My site focuses more on Spanish law and Spain property laws than property prices as such.

Prepare for a House Auction

Housing auctions in Arizona offer huge potential for savings compared to normal home sales, especially if you are a real estate investor!  It’s true that many people don’t want to purchase a home without knowing anything about it but this is the reason for the huge savings.  While you can’t have an auctioned home inspected before purchase you can still gather as much information about it beforehand!

Go visit each house and take a photograph. However please remember that not all of the houses are vacant, so don’t disturb the people living in the property by poking around the house without consent. While there, take a look around and see what type of condition the home is in from where you are standing. Before you leave, take a look at the roof, especially right at the very top and see if it looks tattered. You may also want to talk to the neighbors and see what they have to say about the history of the home and neighborhood.

If you are a real estate investor who wants to make a number of purchases, but can’t cover all areas at once, you may be able to get the assistance of a real estate agent on your team to help you do all of the footwork. Plus, there may be a time where it is critical to have someone who is at a desk to answer last minute questions you may not know the answer to while you’re standing at the courthouse steps. Then when you sell the property, you already have an agent you can trust to put the house on the market.

Whilst there are some great deals out there on MLS, there will be consistently more deals at trustee sales, it is a simple question of mathematics.  On MLS you have the ability to tie up a deal for 3-4 weeks whilst you do all of your due diligence and get your financing together.  This creates an extremely low barrier to entry and allows all real estate investors to participate.  Therefore there are a lot more real estate investors all with the same information fighting for only a certain number of investment properties. However, with trustee sales it is relentless.  As many as 2,000 foreclosure properties can be scheduled for sale any one day.  There are much fewer investors that can act fast enough in order to do their due diligence and pay for the foreclosure property all within a 24 hour period.

How to Bet on Falling House Prices

 

According to the press the US housing market is in freefall and the UK housing market is following it. A market that only moves in one direction clearly offers investors opportunities. But how to trade house prices? One of the easiest ways to gain exposure is through spread betting where some companies now let you speculate on the average UK house price and even the average London house price.

 

Economies thrive on confidence and one of the pillars of confidence in the UK is the value of property. If the whole market grinds to a halt through lack of liquidity then there would be only one direction for it to go. Down. In a market bereft of buyers the prices must fall. With fewer and fewer people able to ‘gear up’ to pay the current prices then I fear this will be the scenario towards which we are heading. A major problem is that once a trend gets set it is very difficult to halt its momentum (witness the property situation in the US). Buyers shrink from putting themselves in hock when they fear that next week / month / year the house they have, so painfully paid for, will have dropped in value. And so stagnation follows. If the housing market locks up then many retailers who thrive on sales to ‘new owners’ will also fail and so on down a long line that ends with recession. At the moment, growth is just enough to keep the tills turning over but without some aid from our central bank I fear that this will not be the case for long.

 

If I was looking to buy a house now I would just knock 25% off the asking price on the basis that this is where forecasters expect the market to be in a years time. Presumably I would be paying a Mortgage (probably around 7.5%) during that time, have paid 2 to 5% stamp duty on the deal plus numerous other house purchase related fees. If the market did indeed drop as expected a purchaser at current levels could easily be looking at an overall negative cash/asset position of some 30-35% by next year once you include all of the costs. That does not sound too good.

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Although for those people who are certain that the markets are in freefall, or for those who feel the UK is different to the US and less affected by sub prime fallout, the spread betting companies have come up with an interesting type of speculation.

 

You can now spread bet on the future UK average house prices.

 

 

Looking at IG Index they make their spreads based on “the Halifax House Price Survey produced by HBOS, the premier and most widely publicised indicator of the UK housing market. So, whether you want to profit from predicted market shifts or hedge against the value of property you already own, you can back your judgement against nationally recognised figures”.

Prices are given in points per £1,000. You simply ‘buy’ if you think the average price is set to rise or ‘sell’ if you think it will fall.

The current spread of the Average London House Price (December) market is 258.1 to 264.1 points.

The current spread of the Average UK House Price (December) market is 163.1 to 166.7 points.

(Both December markets expire on 31 December).

So focussing on London, that spread is basically saying you can bet on London house prices being higher than £264,100 or lower than £258,100 on 31 December.

 

You bet in £x per point. Where a point is £1,000 of the house price. So if you are trading £15 per point and the average house price moves £5,000 (5 points) your profit / loss would change by £15 per point x 5 points = £75.

 

Taking the above London spread let’s say you think the prices will continue to fall. You could therefore Sell £20 per point at 258.1 points.

 

If the market does fall to let’s say 249.5 points (ie £249,500) then you would win / lose: (258.1 points – 249.5 points) x £20 per point = £172 profit.

 

Note that profits in spread betting are tax free*.

 

But if the UK market has a correction or simply stops falling or if London is more resilient to the current mortgage malaise then the average London house price could be £265,200 on 31 December.

 

Therefore if the market closes at, let’s say, 265.2 points then you would win / lose: (258.1 points – 265.2 points) x £20 per point = -£142 loss.

 

Of course, as the example above shows, as with all spread betting, care is needed.

Financial spread betting carries a high level of risk and may not be suitable for all classes of investor. Only trade with money that you can afford to lose. Make sure you fully understand the risks involved. If necessary, seek independent financial advice.

* Note that Tax Law may be different if you pay tax in a jurisdiction outside the UK, it can also change.

 

Property Prices On The Up? Is Now The Time To Move House?

Nottinghamshire and South Yorkshire, like the majority of the UK has seen a big shift in property prices over recent years – but what does that mean for those of us thinking about moving house?

According to the Rightmove House Price Index for February, the average UK asking price has risen by over £7,000 in the past month to £229,398 with sellers asking an average of 3.2% more than last month in some popular locations.

In Worksop, North Nottinghamshire however, a Rightmove search reveals that 54% of properties for sale in the Worksop area still have an asking price of £125,000 or less. So is this making it easier for first time buyers in Worksop to get on to the property ladder, or helping those wanting to move up buy a larger property?

Wherever we live in the UK, property prices are clearly in our thoughts with Rightmove reporting a record month of website visits – 29% more than in January 2009, and their Q1 Consumer Confidence Survey reporting 62% of those surveyed believing it is a good time to buy.

It’s not surprising however that of those searching less than 12% believed the county’s economic climate to be favourable – so would mortgage funding be forthcoming to support any purchases?

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Yes – Mortgage lenders are keen to help responsible buyers, although, their criteria has certainly changed over recent years.

Before deciding whether a house move is for you, it’s vital to take a look at your budget.

Moving house is not just about a new monthly mortgage payment. There are many factors to consider including expenses to take into account, for example solicitors costs, estate agency fees and removal costs not to mention the running costs of your new home.

A good place to start your financial research is to talk to an experienced, whole of market mortgage broker.

A good mortgage broker will not only be able to advise you on your mortgage options but is also likely to be able to guide you through the other costs involved and may even be able to put you in touch with other local professionals to help with your move.

But this still doesn’t answer the question of, given the current position of the property market, is now a good time to buy?

There are many property and financial analysts out there who are happy to give their opinion as to the future of the property market in the UK – some say we’re climbing away from rock bottom while others predict further price drops over the next couple of years.

Whilst it is valuable to understand the possibilities of what the future has in store for us, you are probably considering a new home to support your changing lifestyle and rarely do we make such decisions based purely on scientific opinions.

Moving house in the current climate will most certainly be the right thing to do for some people and not for others.

Just make sure you make your decision with all the information to hand, that way you are less likely to make costly errors or have any nasty surprises.

Good luck with the house hunting and remember to seek out a good, whole or market mortgage broker to help.

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All About York

When the British claimed New York in 1664, they named it after the British city founded by Romans in 71AD. The city in North Yorkshire was later captured by Vikings, who referred to it as Jorvik.

During the Middle Ages it became a wool trading centre and the ecclesiastic capital of northern England. It’s location on the River Ouse, half way between London and Edinburgh have put it in a significant position within Great Britain’s national transport network.

Two centuries after Henry Hudson laid the foundations for the Dutch colonization of New York in America, George Hudson financed an important network of railways to facilitate York’s burgeoning manufacturing industry. These days manufacturing has taken a back seat, with the University of York, the City of York Council and health services being the largest employers. Tourism also boosts the areas economy thanks to a wealth of historic and cultural attractions highlighting its rich heritage.

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‘s economy is based heavily on the service industry, including health, education, finance, information technology and tourism. These account for the vast majority of employment in the area and keep unemployment at a level significant lower than what is average in the UK.

The River Ouse has played an important role in the development of York, as it grew up around a port at the confluence of the River Ouse and the River Foss. The Ouse was a tidal river, being accessed by sea-going ships of the day. Both rivers remain navigable, although a lock means that the Ouse is no longer tidal. Commercial use of the Ouse continued until 1997, and is now almost exclusively leisure-orientated.

The next time you are planning to change the place you live and start window-shopping for cities; York is strongly recommended with its local amenities, commercial opportunities, not-so-expensive property prices and, above all, it’s charming scenes. You can be different and start the rest of your life in a completely new and exciting city; York.

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Automated Home Value/ Property Value Appraiser v/s Real Estate agent

Whenever anybody wants to sell or buy a house, the only destination to find it, that these people think is, a real estate agent. This Real estate agent is a person, whose profession is to get the people homes for purchase and the purchasers for the people who want to sell their properties, for which in-turn. They charge a certain percentage of money on these transactions as a part of commission or the fees for providing their service.

These real estate agents not only provide the service of referring the properties for sale or purchase, but also provide with the knowledge about the home value or the property value. When the people want to buy or sell any house or property, they approach the real estate agents asking them about calculating the home value/ property value, so that they get an idea about what to quote while the purchase or sale of the house. For this service also, the real estate agents charge a very good amount of money, but people think they have to do it, as they are not aware of any other source, from where they can find out the home value/ property value.

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For such people, there are websites that offer the services of not only properties on sale, but also calculating the home value or the property value. These values are calculated automatically once you enter the property address, unlike the real estate agents calculating it manually. It is a fact & nobody can deny it that the automated calculations are more accurate than the manual ones. Humans can err, but the calculator cannot.

The services that these home values & the property values appraiser websites provide are very much accurate & can be completely relied upon by all. Knowing the home value or the property value is very important for anybody, as its ignorance may cause a very big loss.

Getting the real home value or the property value from the real estate agents is not advisable, as there might be many factors which may lead to mistakes by them in the calculating the home values or the property values. This can just be called a human error, as compared to which the websites enabled home value or property value appraisers are much better. And the biggest advantage that these websites offer is they do not charge anything for calculating or letting you know your home value or the property value. This service is absolutely for free & time-saving as well. It is just a simple thought that a human calculating the home value, consuming lot of time of yours & computer software calculating the same value in just few seconds!

And so, it is better to log on the home value or the property value appraiser website, and get the accurate home values and property values now.

Global House Price Downturn Accelerated At End Of 2008 According To The Global Property Guide

It has been a dismal year for house prices, according to the Global Property Guide’s latest survey of publicly-available house-price time-series for the year 2008. And seen from a global perspective, the downturn is still accelerating.

The collapse of the world’s housing markets can be seen from three points of view, and unfortunately, all of them reinforce the bad news.

Only 2 countries saw positive momentum in 2008 (a slower downward house price movement than last year, or faster upward movement), while 28 countries saw their housing market momentum deteriorating, compared to the previous year. The two countries with a positive momentum were Germany and Switzerland.

During 2008 only 8 out of 32 countries saw house prices rise, after adjustment for inflation, while 20 countries experienced house price falls.

In contrast, during the year 2007, the downturn was just beginning, and only 6 countries saw house prices fall, while 24 countries saw house prices rise (all figures inflation-adjusted).

Many house-price falls during 2008 were extremely severe. Countries with house price falls of over 10% during 2008 were Latvia (Riga) (37%), Lithuania (Vilnius) (27%), the US (20%), the UK (18%), Iceland (16%), Ireland (12%), and the Ukraine (Kiev) (12%) (all figures inflation-adjusted).

During 2008’s final quarter, 9 countries saw house price falls of 5% or more during just that quarter. Price drops of more than 10% during this single quarter occurred in three countries – in Latvia (Riga), which saw price falls of 15%, in Ukraine (Kiev) (13%), and in Hong Kong (15%). Other countries with Q4 house-price falls of 5% and over, included the UAE (8%), Lithuania (7%), Iceland (7%), Singapore (6%), Bulgaria (5%), and the UK (5%) (all figures inflation-adjusted, except UAE).

These price falls were much greater than during the previous quarter, Q3. During that previous quarter, only two countries experienced house-price falls (inflation-adjusted) of 5% or more, and no countries experienced house-price falls of more than 10%.

The Baltic countries of Latvia and Lithuania suffered the hardest price falls both in nominal and real terms. In Riga, Latvia, the average price of standard-type apartments plunged 37% during 2008. Prices have been going down in Latvia since late 2007, after a remarkable increase of about 70% in 2006. The most alarming decline took place in the 4th quarter, when prices declined by 15%, the steepest quarterly drop in real terms in any country. These price falls were triggered by increased interest rates, and by the tightened credit rules which Latvia imposed in 2007.

Average prices of apartments in Vilnius, Lithuania, fell by 27% during 2008. House prices started slowing in mid-2007, and crashed in early 2008.

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House prices in the UK plummeted by 18% in 2008. Although mortgage interest rates dropped slightly, to 4.48% in December 2008, the number of loan approvals for house purchases fell 58% in 2008.

There is serious trouble in Iceland (house price fall of 16% during 2008), Ireland (12%), Ukraine (12%), Malta (9%), Portugal (8%), France (8%) Finland (7%), Norway (6%) and in Spain (6%).

In the US, the centre of the global financial crisis, in 2008 house prices fell 20% according to the Case-Shiller house price index, which emphasizes urban areas. OFHEO and FHFB figures, which are associated with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans and have somewhat lost credibility, suggest a smaller decline of 6% and 3% respectively, during 2008. The US government recently approved a $ 787 billion economic stimulus package, of which 5 billion will be allocated to rescue the ailing housing market.

Canada has been much less affected than the US.

Both Australia and New Zealand saw house price declines during 2008, of 7% and 8% respectively.

Housing markets in Asia have not been insulated. Singapore, Hong Kong and Philippines recorded house price falls during 2008.

Singapore’s private residential prices dropped 9% during 2008, in sharp contrast to the 26% price increase of experienced during 2007. The developed countries’ economic troubles adversely affected Singapore’s exports, and during 2008, output in the manufacturing sector, particularly of electronics, precision engineering and chemicals, shrank by 10.7%. Singapore was officially in recession in Q3 2008.

Hong Kong has been badly hit by the crisis. House prices were down by an average of 6% in 2008. But during the last quarter, Hong Kong experienced a severe decline in prices of 14%.

In Makati, Philippines, prime 3-bedroom condominium prices fell by 2% during 2008, after an 11% price rise during 2007. Nevertheless construction of high-rise residential buildings continues, with residential condominium stock rising by 7% during 2008, according to Colliers Philippines.

Japan recorded modest Tokyo condominium price rises of 1.2% during 2008. On the other hand, land prices in Japan’s six major cities fell by 6% y-o-y to Sep-2008.

In Shanghai, China, house price rises slowed to 5% y-o-y by the end of 2008, after peaking at 30% y-o-y to May 2008. However Shanghai is likely to be somewhat exceptional, and Xinhua News Agency reported house prices declines in 70 major cities during 2008. Shenzhen suffered the hardest fall, with prices down by 18% during 2008

In Dubai, UAE, despite the bleak global picture, saw surprisingly large dwelling price rises of 41% during 2008. However during the year’s final quarter, prices fell by 8% in nominal terms. This downturn is attributable to strongly tightening lending criteria, an increase in interest rates, multiple layoffs, and alarm among buyers.

History suggests that in a crash, housing markets take many years from peak year to full recovery. In view of this and of the pessimistic IMF forecast for the global economy, no real recovery is likely in the global housing markets this year.

The IMF has predicted that the world economy will grow by 0.5% in 2009, the lowest level in 60 years. GDP in advanced economies is expected to decline by 2% during 2009. The United Kingdom and Japan will be hit the hardest. Output in the UK may contract by 2.8%, while Japan’s may fall by 2.6%.

Growth in emerging economies is expected to slow to 3.3% in 2009, down from 6.3% in 2008. Developing Asia is forecast to be the least affected, with growth of 5.5%. China’s economy is predicted grow by 6.7% in 2009, but this is a substantial decline from 9% growth during 2008.

We cannot be optimistic for five reasons:
• Valuations still clearly remain stretched in most countries, in terms of price/rent ratios.
• Economic growth is slowing or negative in many countries, which is negative for housing values.
• There are no signs that banks are becoming more willing to lend.
• The unprecedented nature of the financial system’s collapse has greatly added to the difficulties facing the world’s housing markets.
• Some national governments are experiencing difficulty in refinancing their national debt, putting their currencies under pressure. Currency instability is likely to aggravate housing sector problems in countries where many loans were taken out in a foreign currency.

The positive news is that the US government and several others are acting with vigour, as has the IMF. Nevertheless, there is a long tough road ahead.

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The Global Property Guide (http://www.globalpropertyguide.com) is an on-line property research house, specializing in analyzing residential property valuations around the world.

On-line newspapers, magazines, sites, etc wishing to use material from this press release MUST provide a clickable link to www.globalpropertyguide.com Sites and newspapers found not to be providing a link to us will be removed from our press list.

Requests for comments are best made by telephone to +(63) 917 321 7073. UK-based callers should telephone before lunchtime. Our local time is Hong Kong time, i.e., standard time + 8.00

Prince Christian Cruz, Senior Economist
Phone: (+632) 750 0560
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Matthew Montagu-Pollock
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Free Property Listings & Reports Show Substantial Penryn Property Prices Increase

The town of Penryn in Cornwall has shown some substantial property prices over the last year. While searching on free property listings and checking out property price reports the most remarkable increase can be seen in the average price of a semi-detached house in Penryn.

Semi-detached houses in Penryn have increased by an average of 129% comparing April 2009 and April 2010. The average price in 2009 for a semi was £115,000 and in 2010 is £263,500. Terraced houses in Penryn show the next highest increase at 52% whereas a detached house there has fallen by a remarkable 50%. It must be noted that we are dealing with a small amount of data as in 2001 the census for Penryn was 7,166.

Penryn is one of Cornwall’s most ancient towns; it is steeped in history and had its own busy port. As far back as the 14th century half of the inhabitants of the town were foreigners. The population included 22 important merchants and by the 18th century it had a big commercial centre along the river. The granite from Penryn was exported to many parts of the world and was also used to construct both the South Bank and London Bridge.

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Today although it is connected to the port of Falmouth it still retains its own distinct character. A great deal of the old granite town has been restored recently and visitors can enjoy steep, cobbled streets, a museum in the town hall plus a generous choice of pubs, restaurants and cafes.

For those who enjoy lovely scenery and the outdoors there are nice sandy beaches close by as well as great walks along the river banks and through the woodlands. These days a 70 acre estate has had around £80 million invested in new buildings as part of the Combined Universities in Cornwall initiative. This is called the Tremough Campus (tremough means pig farm) and it is part of the University College Flamouth and the University of Exeter. Penryn is also home to Penryn College which is an LEA maintained comprehensive specialist sports college.

Penryn has enjoyed a revival over the last few years with restoration work on historic buildings and the re-development of its estuary which houses the Jubilee Wharf, an eco friendly building which is home to wonderful art and craft shows and music. It is said that there is a good mix of people living there and a good feeling. Properties can be found on both the free listing sites as well as estate agents if you are considering a move to Penryn, Cornwall.

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Mallorca Property Prices ? A question and answer session reviewing the Mallorca Property Market

In this latest review of the Mallorca residential real estate market, David Novi, an experienced Chartered Surveyor and Mallorca property market expert gives his opinion on the various key questions owners and purchasers of Mallorca property may have as they look forward to 2011.

Yes! The official statistics from the Ministry of Housing and those produced by the large valuation company’s like Tinsa all show that since the peak in the market in 2007 prices have fallen by around 10 – 16%, depending on which statistics you look at. Generally this is somewhat less than some of the worst effected coastal areas on the Spanish Mainland such as the Costa del Sol and Costa Blanca.

In my opinion the answer to both questions is yes. We can look at the reasons why the statistics may throw up erroneous figures or not but ultimately in my experience, and from the anecdotal evidence of others operating in the market, those properties that sell show discounts of between 25% and 40% on their original asking prices (if they have been on the market since the peak of the market) or on the sort of values that were being asked and paid at the peak.

Yes things are selling but there are too many fundamental problems with the market, in terms of all the economic variables effecting both demand and supply, to say that the “market is coming back to life”. Local demand is muted due to unemployment levels, lack of consumer confidence and lack of mortgage finance. Demand from international buyers is returning but buyers remain few and far between, are very cautious, and those from the UK still hampered by the weak Pound. On the supply side their is a situation of stagnation – too many old over priced properties clogging up the market and a lack of new properties coming to the market with an appropriate price tag.

There are reasons why the Spanish property market does not react as quickly in a downturn, compared to others such as the USA or UK markets, not least because there are so may people who simply don’t need to sell (most Spaniards own their home without a mortgage and are able to “sit tight” when things get tough); equally they don’t “get on their bike” (thank you Norman Tebbit for that little gem, and how right he was!!) ie they will not move to where the jobs are! The bottom line is that the attitude ”if I sell I sell and if I don’t I don’t” prevails leaving the market full of overpriced unsellable properties.

There are only 2 options open to vendors, reduce an asking price / personal expectation of value and sell or don’t have the courage and foresight to do that and don’t sell! Even just in my experience, as a relatively small niche operator in the market, I can give you numerous examples of properties that are falling in price (ie owners are reducing their asking price) but each time they are lagging what is really happening to the underlying values at any particular time ie the properties are always remaining over priced or at least “toppish”! Just to make something very clear properties with a “toppish” price do not sell in a falling market!

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First and foremost they do not sell, or at least do not sell until their approach changes. Secondly they are potentially losing tens or even hundreds of thousands of euros adopting this approach. Let me give you a simple example. A property is worth 400,000€ but the owner puts an asking price of 500,000€ and tells the estate agent(s) he/ she wants 450,000€. The owner receives an offer of 400,000€ which he rejects. At the end of the year the agent persuades the owner to reduce the asking price to 450,000€ “negotiable” and he instructs the agent that he will accept now 400,000€ . The underlying value of the property is however now 360,000€ (down by 10%) and thus unsurprisingly the next offer made is 360,000€ which again the owner rejects. At the end of the year the cycle starts again with the asking price coming down to 400,000€ (again “negotiable”) and the underlying value also down by 10% to 324,000€.

What has happened? Firstly the owner ends up with an “asking price” that is the same as the original value and the original offer that he rejected. The property doesn’t sell or it it does it will be because the owner has “bowed to the power of the market” (no one has ever beaten the market – just ask Greece and Ireland!!) and sells at 324,000€, a whopping 76,000€ less than the original offer!

A positive note: That said although the poor owner seems to have made a right mess of things, salvation is at hand! That very same market that seemed to have dealt the nastiest of blows now comes back to help and offers opportunities to reinvest the sales proceeds in properties that the owner wanted but at much reduced prices! Obviously if the owner does not want to reinvest then the story doesn’t end so positively! ie sell low (or I would say realistically) and then buy / reinvst low and in that way you have not lost anythying!

Yes and no! Firstly there needs to be a general consensus amongst more than just a few “brave and realistic” owners if the dynamic is to change and at this moment in time I think that is very unlikely. The market data does not help. The fact that the official statistics lag the market requires that owners take a leap of faith which most people find very hard to do. Staying with the supply side the other problem for the “realistic” owner / vendor (yes they will be “vendors” while the others will remain “owners”!) is that once he has the money in his pocket the choice of properties, that are realistically priced, is small and he may therefore find it difficult to reinvest! (finding well priced properties is not that difficult at the moment, but what is, is finding well priced properties that meet exactly what a buyer is looking for - location, size, type etc)

It is hard to generalise, as each owner is different but if they want to sell they need to understand what is the real underlying value of their house and that needs to be based on what people are selling their properties for in Mallorca, what people are asking! That isn’t easy as getting actual sales figures is hard enough and given transaction volumes are low getting figures for comparable properties is even harder. The alternative is getting a competent valuer and / or estate agent to help. As a rule of thumb (but no more) the price will probably be somewhere between 25% – 40% below what the property was “worth” at the peak of the market or what it was worth in around 2004. The asking price will need to leave room to negotiate, as no one will pay an asking price in this market.

In relation to reinvestment they need to be patient and do good market research. There are some very well priced properties out there but they are still the minority and sometimes they need “unearthing”. Even then the right opportunity may not appear until more owners adopt the realistic stance that they have had. More and more are (some through their own choice others due to necessity!) so it will happen and more buying opportunities will emerge.

The same as I have just said in relation to reinvestment by vendors. Patience and market research. Every day I see more and more well priced properties throughout the Island, so real buying opportunities exist but, as I have said above, it may take time to find the buying opportunity that meets exactly what you are looking for.

Yes if you want to buy one of the over priced properties but no if you want to buy one of the appropriately priced ones! Make one thing very clear, buying one of the over priced properties will be an expensive mistake! In reality very few people are making mistakes as the over priced properties just aren’t selling! Although the official data and the general perspective in the market may be one of ongoing price falls over the next 12-18 months that will be because some asking prices will adjust down and the simple fact that the data lags the real market. Where people buy well there should be little downside risk ie further falls in the underlying value of that property. (note: see my October Mallorca Property Market Report for those properties that are likely to perform best / be better long term buys)

For further information or details of how David can provide a personalised approach to finding and buying a property in Mallorca contact him at Novi Property Mallorca

Property for sale in Mallorca see http://www.novipropertymallorca.com

Mallorca property see http://www.propertiesinternationalmallorca.com

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