Property experts have predicted that house prices in the US will have experienced a total growth of 6.7 per cent by the end of 2013, a survey has revealed. The Zillow Home Price Expectations Survey spoke to 108 real estate experts, economists and investment strategists. Respondents to the survey predict that after this year, appreciation rates will fall to 4.3 per cent in 2014, and eventually to 3.4 per...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has claimed that a brand new property bubble could be forming in Dubai, gulfbusiness.com reports. In the run up to the global financial crisis of 2008, Dubai saw one of the most concentrated price bubbles on earth. This also meant, however, that when the crash came, it also suffered among the worst fates, with some state-linked companies coming close to...

House prices in the Swiss Alps have skyrocketed since the national cap on second-homes was introduced. New figures suggest prices have risen by up to 15 per cent in some resorts, due to a diminishing supply of properties that can be used as holiday homes. The cap, which was made into law back in March 2012, states that only 20 per cent of homes in any given communities can be used as second homes. This...

The French property market experienced a 1.1 per cent fall in the second quarter of the year (2013), but results varied considerably from region to region. That's according to a new report from Notaires, which confirmed that the biggest decline has been recorded in Pas de Calais, which took a dive of 10.7 per cent - followed closely by the Indre and Loire. They fell 8.9 per cent and 7.4 per cent...

When you let your house out to tenants, there are plenty of ways you can protect your money and your property to ensure that everything runs smoothly. Checking the reliability of a tenant Obviously it's preferable to get reliable tenants in the first place.  Arguably the most important thing is to ensure you get references for them. You should aim to have testimonials from both their employer and...

The long awaited opening of a huge new theme park in Spain could boost property prices in nearby areas, propertywire.com reports. A new Paramount Theme Park - created by the film corporation responsible for Titanic, Indiana Jones and Top Gun, among many others - is set to open in Murcia, Spain, during the second half of 2015.   With the attraction set to become one of the biggest in Europe and put...

Istanbul is fast becoming one of Europe's property investment hotspots. New figures released by local property consultants Universal 21 indicate that property prices in the Turkish capital jumped by more than 2.5 per cent in August. This helped the city record an average property price increase of 13.8 per cent for the year. It's not just Istanbul which is interesting investors though. Throughout the...

Comic actor Steve Martin has put his Caribbean villa on the market for the princely sum of $10.5 million (£6.6 million), businessinsider.com reports. Villa Au Soleil (Villa in the Sun) sits high up in the hillsides of popular Caribbean island, St Barts. In true superstar fashion, it offers a 180 degree panorama of the glistening Baie de St Jean (The Bay of St John's), not to mention a two-tiered...

New mortgage rules have been rolled out by the UAE Central Banks for those buying property in Dubai, propertywire.com reports. The rules have been rolled out in the hope of avoiding a similar property boom and bust cycle as witnessed in the mid 2000s, where prices soared before plummeting when global finances became unstable. It will see mortgages only offered to those with high enough deposits, although...

House prices in Australia have increased again this quarter, marking the longest run of quarterly rises since 2010. According to propertywire.com, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reveals that house prices during the September quarter rose by 1.9 per cent on average - up by 7.6 per cent compared to the same period last year. House prices in Sydney led the way with an increase of 3.6...