The second home market in Italy is doing better than many others, according to a recently released report from Italian estate agents association FIAIP. The report looks at the market in the second half of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 and covers the top 20 resort areas in the country. Property values have remained steady, according to the report. The values of second homes in the popular resort areas...
There was an increase in the number of international departures from Brazilian airports in April, 2009, according to the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC). April saw a 3.5 percent increase in international flights when compared to the same period in 2008. The number of passengers per flight also went up slightly as well.. The two main airlines in Brazil are TAM and Gol, and together they capture...
Authorities in Dubai are getting set to review all pending development projects. A new law gives authority to the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) and the Dubai Land Department to cancel projects that do not start construction within six months of approval from the government. Currently there are 27 projects that are being considered for cancellation and RERA is ready to look at additional...
A British Kayak Coach is attracting visitors to the Turkish coast with a new way to see the stunning coastline. Anyone who wants to get a different perspective on the beautiful coastline of Turkey can now experience it from a kayak, courtesy of English expat Dean Livesey. His company Seven Capes is based in Fethiye along the Mediterranean coast of Turkey and is operated by Dean and his Turkish-born wife...
The Pakistani government has allocated land and plans to construct 6 million homes to ease the acute housing shortage in the country. Some 20,200 hectares of land in four provinces has been reserved for the housing, and the government is now working with and lining up investors to construct the new homes. The proposed projects will be a public-private partnership where the government will provide the...
The average price for property in Spain has fallen 10 percent from April, 2008 to April, 2009, according to the latest figures from Spanish appraisal company Tinsa. The year on year fall was led by the coastal regions, or costas, where prices fell by approximately 13.5 percent over that period. The large cities, including Madrid and Barcelona, saw property prices declining by 10.3 percent over the past...
A uniquely-designed collection of 80 terraced apartments in Copenhagen, Denmark takes its inspiration from Mt.Everest, according to the architects. Danish firm Bjarke Ingels Group has designed the apartment complex on top of a parking garage. The design uses the garage as a “mountain of cars,” according to Bjarke Ingels, the designer. The apartment complex is named, appropriately, Mountain Dwellings...
Abu Dhabi’s SaadiyatIsland development is set to begin construction work on the St. Regis hotel in July, according to the Tourism and Development Company (TDIC). The construction contract for the hotel will be announced in the next several weeks, while the whole development is planned to be finished by 2020, two years later than originally projected. “The first phase of the development is on...
The 7th International Sand Sculpture Festival (FIESA) is set to take place in the town of Pera in Portugal’s Algarve region beginning on May 22. It is considered the largest festival of sand sculpture in the world by many aficionados and this year’s spectacle will run all summer and end on October 22. The festival opens to the public on May 22, and some 60 international teams have been busy...
Hilton Hotels has decided to open a second property in the New Zealand resort town of Taupo as it will take over management of a 113 unit that is already located there. This is the second property for the hotel chain, which opened its first in Auckland’s PrincesWharf in 2001. The company’s move to open new properties in New Zealand is good news for the tourism industry, which has struggled so far in...