europeVirtually every country in Europe has undergone a property boom since the late 1990s with prices doubling and even tripling in some key markets. Thousands of people have grown wealthy off the unprecedented increases in property values in countries such as the United Kingdom, Ireland and Spain. More recently Baltic countries and Central and Eastern Europe have charmed investors. But a bubble has emerged in many states. Historically high levels of household debt coupled with higher interest rates caused the bubble to pop in some countries - notably the UK and Spain - in late 2007 on the back of the subprime mortgage crisis in the US. Though few property markets will escape the effects of a global slowdown, some experts are confident that some European countries still offer investment potential, particularly those that kept their cool during the boom years. Portugal and Germany are two possible examples of developed real estate markets that still have potential for price growth. In the eastern Mediterranean, meanwhile, Turkey and Cyprus continue to attract interest.
IMF sees 20% drop in Spanish house pricesSpanish house prices are “overvalued” by as much as 20 percent, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) states in a new report that warns that Spain will suffer more than any other European economy from the current global real estate slump. “The slowdown in property investment will have more serious consequences in Spain than in any other European economy,” Roberto Cardarelli, one of the authors of the IMF’s World Economic Outlook said. Read more - Europe Rush to rent as Britons turn their backs on home ownership amid property slumpThe UK is losing its love affair with home ownership as falling house prices and money worries encourage people to drop off the property ladder and become renters, a new survey reveals. Read more - Europe UK landlords head for the doorLandlords across the United Kingdom are starting to sell their properties and are heading abroad amid fears of a crash in the country’s housing market, property analysts have warned. Read more - Europe Credit crisis unlikely to Czech real estate price growthThe crisis in international credit markets that in many countries is being interpreted as the beginning of the end of long property booms will have a limited impact on the real estate market in the Czech Republic, a senior central bank official has said. Read more - Europe UK house price growth continues to slowHouse prices in the United Kingdom increased 0.4 percent in August as rising borrowing costs and growing affordability problems cooled demand, a new report shows. Read more - Europe Spanish housing minister downplays crisis talkSpanish Housing Minister Carmen Chacón has confirmed that the Spanish real estate market is continuing to slow with prices likely to rise by only around 4 or 5 percent this year after climbing 5.8 percent in the first six months, the slowest pace since the start of a decade-long property boom. Read more - Europe End of property boom to cool Spanish economic growthSpanish economic growth will contract to 1.5 percent in 2008, less than half the rate expected this year, due to the end of the country’s real estate boom and a prolonged slowdown in the construction industry, analysts with German bank Commerzbank have warned. Read more - Europe The new potential of old BerlinOver the last 12 months, Berlin has emerged as one of the world's property investment hotspots but what is the truth, the potential and the pitfalls of this dynamic, cultural and economic metropolis? Read more - Europe UN warns of “inevitable” real estate crisis in SpainSpain is facing an “inevitable” real estate crisis that will affect a large segment of the population who are struggling under mortgages they can barely afford, the United Nations top housing policy official has warned. Read more - Europe UK property glut slows rising house pricesLondon house prices rose at the slowest pace in five months in June after prices fell in more than half of the UK capital’s districts in a sign that the property boom in one of the world’s most expensive cities may have reached its peak. Read more - Europe France in line for property boom on Sarkozy victoryFrance’s flagging real estate sector, like its economy, could turn around over the coming years with the victory of Nicolas Sarkozy in the presidential election set to usher in a series of reforms that will benefit homeowners and property investors. Read more - Europe Spanish house prices likely to fall by at least 5% in 2008, analysts predictHouse prices in Spain could fall by 5 percent or more next year as the country’s 10-year real estate boom ends, research by investment bank Morgan Stanley suggests. Read more - Europe Tales of a property boom in Turkey - a done deal or a magic carpet ride?With real estate prices past their peak in traditional investment hotspots, European investors are increasingly turning their attention to Turkey as the next country in which to buy property. But, given Turkey’s recent political turmoil and the mounting doubts about EU membership, are the hopes of healthy returns a done deal or are investors being taken for a magic carpet ride? Read more - Europe Spain hears that popping sound, as real estate bubble burstsPanic selling of real estate stocks on the Madrid stock exchange on April 24 may signal the bursting of Spain’s 10-year property bubble, with construction firms, banks and the nation’s heavily indebted property owners likely to suffer. Read more - Europe Price pain in Spain drives Spaniards to look for investment property abroadWith property prices now sky high, Spain’s 10-year real estate boom is starting to cool and fears of a downturn are causing even Spanish investors to cash in and move out. Analysts expect Portugal and Germany to benefit from the exodus. Read more - Europe Andorra, investment potential in a nutshellLittle known outside of the skiing and financial communities, the small European tax haven of Andorra has seen sharp increases in property values over the last two years, and a repeat performance in 2007 looks possible. Read more - Europe Switzerland's property market reversing courseThe Swiss housing market is heading for a soft landing. This is the conclusion reached by Credit Suisse economists in their 2007 real estate study. Read more - Europe Monaco and London, most expensive locations for buyersMonaco and London continue to be the most expensive locations to buy an apartment in Europe, while prices in the Baltics have risen to the same level as capitals such as Copenhagen, Berlin, Munich, Stockholm, Vienna. Read more - Europe Northern Europe leads price rises as earlier strong performers lagNorthern European and Baltic countries saw the highest house price rises among major real estate markets worldwide in 2006, but some star performers of earlier years showed signs of flagging growth, a report shows. Read more - News High UK property prices drive first-time buyer exodus abroadOne in three Britons would consider buying a property abroad just to get onto the housing ladder, according to the new research out today from MRI Overseas Property. Read more - Europe Green taxes on air travel could slow second home demandGovernments are preparing to introduce new taxes to combat global warming in a move that could push up the cost of budget air travel and slow demand for second homes abroad, predicts one international property agency. Read more - Europe A million may not be enough for MonacoNewswireToday - Already on par with real estate prices in New York and London, Monaco property prices could be set to go even higher in 2007. Read more - Europe
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