Foreclosure filings rose in March in the United States to 341,180, according to RealtyTrac. The total number includes bank notices to bank repossessions, so there is some leeway in there for the actual number of people who lost their homes. That figure is up 17 percent from February and 46 percent from March, 2008. For the first quarter of 2009, filings rose 9 percent from the previous quarter and 24...

Nine of the 13 beaches recommended by Conde Nast Traveller are in Brazil, one of the beaches named may not be so familiar to many overseas property investors it is at Praia de Sibauma   Just south of Natal, capital of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte, is one of the best beaches in the country, Praia de Sibauma. The strand of beach is as yet undiscovered by the masses of tourists who visit Natal...

A luxurious beachfront project in Punta del Este, Uruguay recently sold one of its two penthouses for US$7.3 million to a buyer from Switzerland. The 34 unit Acqua is a new project designed by well known Uruguayan architect Rafael Viñoly and is his first project in his home country. The glass-walled property overlooks the beach and ocean along Uruguay’s coast and has stunning views from each...

General Growth Properties, one of the largest mall operators in the United States, filed for bankruptcy in mid April. The company has been in negotiations for months with its creditors for better terms on paying down its $25 billion debt. When those failed, it decided to reorganize through bankruptcy.   The company is based in Chicago and filed for bankruptcy in Manhattan. It indicated that its malls will...

The second version of Egypt’s Next Move real estate exhibition is getting ready to take place from April 28, 2009 through May 1, 2009. The first edition of the exhibition was a resounding success with 20,000 visitors, and the 2009 show is expecting more than 30,000 attendees. It will be held in the Cairo International Convention and Conference Center in Nasr City just minutes from the airport and...

European inflation and production data released today was generally neutral, CPI coming in exactly as analysts expected at 0.4% for March.   The Euro gained a little strength against the Pound, trading just above the 1.13 level.   This month has been positive for the currency pair, the Pound gaining around 4% in value against the single currency since April 1st. The movement has mostly been due to a...

The latest figures just released by the Spanish airport operators AENA reveal that visitor numbers to the holiday destination of Lanzarote fell by nearly 20% last month. With some of the largest percentage falls occurring in the British market – the island’s largest source of tourist arrivals.   The new AENA figures show that the total number of tourists arriving on flights to Lanzarote fell from...

The International Monetary Fund has lowered its forecast for growth in the United Arab Emirates. The latest estimate for economic growth in the UAE is 2.1 percent, down on expectations of lower oil prices and the slowing global economy. That is down from estimates that were, in some cases, over 10 percent at times throughout last year.   “The outlook for 2009 and beyond has become more clouded, as the...

The estate of Severin Wunderman has put his southern France chateau and its contents on the market for €18 million. Wundermin was former owner of luxury watch company Corum and also created the watch company Severin Montres. He passed away last year at the age of 69 and now his beloved home is to be put up for sale.   The watch entrepreneur purchased the 17th century hunting lodge in the early 1990s...

The housing market in parts of New Zealand is benefitting from the tough economic times abroad, according to a recent article in the New Zealand Herald newspaper. Expats living abroad, particularly New Zealanders in the UK, have been looking for a place to invest their money, and property back home has benefitted.   According to Brendon Skipper of Trade Me Property, expats are “looking for a job,...