Archive for April, 2010
Lower Interest Rates Will Revitalise Property Market By 2010
Economists agree that as the global recession takes hold and economic growth comes under threat interest rates will begin to decline prompting a revival in South Africas property market by the beginning of 2010.
Even though the subprime mortgage collapse in the United States sent the world economy into a liquidity crisis; South African banks were virtually unaffected and still considered to be some of the most stable in the world.
Giving credit to consumers who are considered uncreditworthy puts banks in a position where they are at risk of being unable to finance debt as clients cannot pay their loans. The National Credit Act NCA came into effect on 1 June 2007 which has made receiving a loan from any bank more difficult than in the past.
An inflationary cycle that started in June 2006 spurred the South African Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee MPC to raise interest rates 10 times or a cumulative five percent until the repo rate was left unchanged at 12 percent in August 2008.
A large number of South Africans had to sell their properties as they had exceeded their financial capacity by taking out too many bonds on existing properties and were unable to keep up with their bond payments in the wake of continually increasing interest rates.
In 2009 the direction of the property market is largely defined by what is happening globally as well as politically in South Africa.
With the introduction of the National Credit Act as well as high interest rates loans became difficult to get approved and people were already financially stretched; this made buying property extremely difficult for many people in 2008.
Potential buyers could no longer receive 100 percent of the value of the home as a loan because the lending criteria at banks had changed. Now before qualifying for a loan buyers also have to put down a deposit of between 10 and 15 percent of the value of the home.
Property owners were forced to sell their properties at prices much lower than initially desired due to high interest rates. Sellers who took 5 to 10 percent off their price in the past were now having to take 20 to 30 percent off their original price.
If there is a swing in the property market in 2009 and if interest rates continue to come down consumers will be encouraged to once again invest in property.
In the recent past the property market was more of a buyers market as people were forced to accept lower offers for their properties.
Experts however are finally beginning to feel positive about the notion that interest rates will come down. The market should begin to pick up from the middle of 2009 and onwards. Some economists say that even though the South African property market will be fairly weak for most of 2009 it will begin picking up as we near 2010.
In the midst of global economic turmoil South African property has been rather resilient. A decrease in interest rates is expected to pave the way for greater interest in the property market once again.
As of now it appears that we seem to have reached the lowest point to which the property market can go and with cuts in interest rates and salary increases interest in the South African property market is bound to take off again.
About the writer: Leapfrog Property Group is an innovative firstofitskind real estate business model offering you the very best in investment property in South Africa.
Looking For The Perfect Place To Live? Check Out New York City Real Estate
Does the idea of the Big Apple appeal to you? Are you tired living in a dull city and want to live an exciting life? Then buying a piece of Manhattan Real Estate is a good thing to consider.
When you have searched for homes in different areas you can become overwhelmed at the prospects. You are looking for a home where the whole family will be happy. If you have children you want to offer them the best possible opportunities for them to make it in this life. You want to live someplace where events take place on a daily basis. If this sounds like you then New York City is the place to live.
Things to Remember
When you are searching for perfect luxury homes you should look beyond the price of the house. You need to look at the interest rate and make sure you get the best rate available as well as finding out what the interest will be down the road with your loan. You should really read everything before signing anything especially the fine print. If you have the opportunity you may wish to hire an attorney who can help you understand everything and has your interest in mind. Everyone who borrows money to buy a home is unique. The loan should be catered to your needs wants and desires.
You should also remember to ask about all the additional costs and fees accompanying the mortgage on your home. Be sure to doublecheck the fine print and verify the time limit of the closing. Most importantly make sure you have everything lined up before signing that bottom line.
Interesting Facts about New York City Real Estate
When you search for a house one of the things you should do is check out the area and surrounding places to see if it fits into your lifestyle. The annual average temperature is roughly 55F. As of 2007 the average home of the New York City Real Estate area was roughly 783000. Other averages in the area include the condo price at 1.26 million Manhattan apartment price at 1415000 and Brooklyn neighborhood price at 623000.
Activities in New York City
There are numerous places to visit and spend time when visiting New York City. Just imagine living in this wonderful place and having the opportunity to visit the following places whenever you want. You could always visit Central Park. There are 843 acres to discover. There are numerous activities to do with your family in Central Park.
There is the Friedsam Memorial Carousel Belvedere Castle Central Park Wildlife Center or Zoo Tischs Childrens Zoo Strawberry Field Wollman Ice Skating Rink Great Lawn and Conservatory Water. All of these places within Central Park make it a wonderful drawing for anyone who wants to move to an active city. Central park is fantastic to take your family on a picnic or just lie around by yourself and contemplate and reflect on your life.
The next place to visit with your is the Metropolitan Museum of Art also known as the Met. There are more than 2000000 pieces of art. Third you could visit Staten Island Ferry where you get to experience just what the immigrants experienced on their first ride to a new world. You get to see the Statue of Liberty New York City skyline and the Brooklyn Bridge while riding on this ferry. From this ferry you can visit the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island which would give you a first hand view of this majestic lady.
When visiting or living in New York City you could go to Grand Central Terminal and take it to Trinity Church Empire State Building Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Frick Collection as well as the Lower East Side Tenement Museum.
If all of the above sounds like something you would like to offer your family then you need to check into New York City Real Estate. You and your family will love the nonstop pace of the Big Apple.
About the writer: Angela Dolson
London Dictates House Prices
House prices increased with 0.4 within October in London.
The latest survey from Hometrack reveals that this year the growth of prices for houses was the highest in two years time. Due to the annual increase of prices which was of 4.9 an average house in UK costs now approximately 168600.
But the engine of this constant house price rise is in fact the Capital of England which is dealing with an imbalance between the demand and the supply. Because of this the year was marked with a 9.9 increase of the prices and October only recorded a rise of 0.9.
Even so there are strong clues which permit us to believe that the trend of the market is going to slow down. For example the average time needed in order for a property to be sold is somewhere around 3 4 weeks and these figures were registered three months ago also. Further more the proportion of the house price rising has been decreasing lately and specialists warn that the population has to be realistic with respect to the future prices growth.
Hometrack’s Director of Research Richard Donnell is of the opinion that “A flood of potentially overpriced properties coming to the market would certainly put an end to the recent level of price rises.”
More over the situation outside London is extremely different. The strongest price rises in the country were just a little bit over half of the level of London. Therefore the South East registered a rise of 0.5 while South East reached only the level of 0.2. In other regions such as North West Wales West Midlands Yorkshire and lots of others the rise was almost inexistent recorded at only 0.1.
Richard Donnell explains the phenomenon: “Pricing levels are going through a prolonged period of readjustment in the wake of strong growth which took place between 2000 and 2004.” He also added that “Judging by how long it took the London market to adjust between 2001 and 2005 this is a trend that may well last into 2007.”
In the predictions of the representative of Hometrack the year is most likely to end with a 5 average growth of the house prices and about 12 growth for London.
For wide selection of apartments and properties for rent/buy in London
About the writer: href=’Clapham Fulham and more please visit www.moveto.co.uk.