Washington Post
17 October 2009
Foreclosures will peak by the end of 2010 and unemployment will climb above 10% as the housing market and US economy grapple with the aftermath of the recession, the Mortgage Bankers Association’s chief economist has said. Jay Brinkmann’s forecast, released at the trade association’s annual convention in San Diego, envisions a slowly growing economy and improving housing market.
South China Morning Post
18 October 2009
Industry observers have condemned Henderson Land Development’s plan to omit 48 floor numbers in its 39 Conduit Road apartment block so that it can market the top two floors of the luxury project as 68 and 88 – both lucky numbers in Chinese numerology. The developer recently sold an apartment in Hong Kong’s upscale Mid-Levels district for HK$71,280 (US$9,197) per sq ft, a world record.
The Moscow Times
20 October 2009
The number of apartment-selling scams in Moscow has risen by as much as 40% since the start of the economic crisis. The city police said that, by September, there had been 5,000 instances of fraud registered this year, including about 300 involving apartments. Realtors say that flats being marketed at “alluring prices” are often being sold illegally, under false documents, by unlicensed people with no authority to be selling the apartments in the first place.
The Australian
20 October 2009
Embattled Gold Coast property developer Craig Gore is suing Sydney builder Ivan McFadyen for A$250,000 in defamation damages. Gore filed the claim after McFadyen appeared on television allegedly accusing the developer of not paying him for some of the work he did. Last month, Gore launched a A$350,000 defamation claim against his former pilot, Tom Sutton, and his wife, Lisa, after they appeared on the same programme. Both McFadyen and the Suttons say they will defend the claims.
New Zealand Herald
20 October 2009
The board of New Zealand’s largest listed commercial landlord is expected to be grilled on Thursday about big drops in the value of its portfolio. Shareholders in AMP NZ Office Trust will lobby for a new fee structure or an internalisation of the management contract and a change in the governance structure.
