According to new statistics from Knight Frank, a London-based 115-year-old consultancy firm, China remains the hottest residential property market in the world despite Beijing's efforts to push prices down and limit development over the previous three years. Newmark Knight Frank, the North American affiliate, is located in New York City. directorys
The rankings are based on house price increases between the fourth quarter of 2006 and the fourth quarter of 2011.
China is a nation with a
As the second largest economy in the world is experiencing fast expansion, home prices have grown by more than 110% in the previous five years in key cities like Beijing and Shanghai.
According to the statistics of Knight Frank, in the fourth quarter of 2011, housing in the main areas cost $19,400 per square meter or $1,800 per square foot. A comparable property in Beijing costs 1.600 dollars a square foot or 17.400 dollars a square meter.
Shanghai is a town in China.
Years of tightening measures are over. The government of China began to make headway in the second part of last year. In February, house prices decreased by 0.1 percent for the fifth consecutive month.
According to a recent Reuters study, China's average house prices are projected in 2012 to fall between 10% and 20%.
Meanwhile, this year's sales have grown for the country's property developers. In March last year, Vanke, China's top developer in sales, recorded a 24% growth over the same month, the second straight month of development in the firm.
China Land Overseas, the largest market developer in the country, had revenues of 1.7 trillion dollars in February, increasing 209 per cent year earlier from the same month.
Hong Kong is a Hong Kong city.
According to Knight Frank, the city eclipsed London as the world's most expensive office leasing market last year as a key global financial centre.
The average housing price in primary areas was around $47,500 per square meter in the fourth quarter of 2011 or $4,400 per square foot, the fourth most in the world.
Local outcry about high prices and international purchases led the Hong Kong monetary body to take action last year forcing purchasers whose main source of income was outside Hong Kong to pay an additional 10 percent discount when buying a house.
All this has led to a recent downturn. According to Knight Frank, home prices grew by just 11.3% in 2011 compared with 20.1% in 2010.
According to industry projections, rates have so far climbed by 6.7 percent in relatively moderate terms. In February, sales of luxury households worth above $1.29 million dropped 23.6%, after falling 17.4% in January, according to Knight Frank.
Israel is a Middle East country
A number of rallies in 2011 have prompted higher domestic prices in Israel, with protestors demanding the government to act to refresh the market, Knight Frank analyzes. Last July, tens of thousands came to the streets to protest against the housing crisis and rising rents. As a result of the demonstrations, property values seem to have soared. In 2011, they fell by 1.2%.
However, there seems to be a recovery of the market for property in February following a rate decrease of between 3.25% and 2.5%, with new banks' mortgages rising by more than 14% compared to the previous two months.
Singapore is a southeastern city state
Singapore is the most expensive real estate market in Southeast Asia. Knight Frank reports that the average price of a city-state primary property in the fourth quarter of 2011 was $25,600 per square meter or $2,600 per square foot.
According to ECA International, the country was also the third most costly city in Asia, behind Hong Kong and Tokyo, to rent a high-end home last year. Low loan rates and a recent migrant surge have stimulated demand for homes.
Singapore is a regional financial hub with an enormous foreign population which drives domestic pricing. According to Citigroup, more than a third of the 5.2 million inhabitants in Singapore and 18 per cent of new houses sold during the third quarter of 2011 are foreigners.
According to DTZ, the mainland Chinese purchasers are the largest group of international buyers and represent 30.6% of foreign sales in the third quarter of 2011.
Colombia is a South American nation.
Colombia is the only South American nation to make the list.
Rapid economic development, with GDP growth of about 6 percent in 2011 – the greatest in four years – resulted in house purchases rising, particularly in the growing middle class.
In addition, a decade-long military campaign against illegal armed groups has made businesses safer in the nation, encouraging a rise in foreign investment and boosting property values. Foreign direct investment grew by more than 30 percent in the first quarter of 2012 to $4.2 billion, compared to the same period previous year.
In 2010, property prices grew 3.2% year-on-year, while new house sales climbed 19% in the first half of 2011 compared with the same period the previous year, according to official figures.
Taiwan is a Taiwanese country.
Taiwan is one of the world's most populous countries. Rapid urbanization in Taipei, the country's largest metropolis, has brought about overpopulation.
According to Knight Frank, Taiwan's prices decreased by 4.1 percent in 2011 but house prices averaged more than 30 percent between 2006 and 2011. Prices have decreased as a consequence of tightening actions by the government such as the "luxury levy" adopted last year.
Any investment property sold within 2 years now is subject to a 10% charge, which will increase to 15% if the property is sold within 1 year. The tax is not applicable to properties utilized by the owners. H&B Realty, the largest mortgage broker in Taiwan, reports that the time it takes for a house to be sold decreased to a low of six months in March showing signs of recovery on the housing market.