PNT Reporter

28 Apr 2023

China's real estate sector faced significant challenges over the past year, with the downturn caused by reduced credit availability and the near bankruptcy of industry leader Evergrande. Despite this, the National Bureau of Statistics recently reported a significant increase in property prices in major cities across China, indicating a potential stabilization of the market. However, experts caution that the real estate sector may experience a slowdown in the future, as credit availability remains an issue, and the pandemic has caused anxiety among potential buyers.Read more

PNT Reporter

28 Apr 2023

A recent analysis by City Hall revealed that private landlords in England are receiving £1.6bn in housing benefits each year for providing non-decent homes. The problem is particularly severe in London, where £500m of welfare money is being spent on privately rented homes that are in poor condition and fail to meet health and safety standards. Tenants are also paying an additional £7.3bn annually to rent these inadequate homes from landlords. The government has yet to deliver on the reforms promised for the private rented sector in its 2019 manifesto, and while plans for a renter’s reform bill were announced last year, the bill has been delayed.Read more

PNT Reporter

27 Apr 2023

The construction of single-family homes in the US has increased for the second month in a row. The Northeast, Midwest, and South regions experienced an increase in single-family housing, but the West saw a decline. Further, permits for future construction have also seen a significant rise, signalling a positive outlook for the struggling housing market. The rise is attributed to buyers taking advantage of lower mortgage rates. However, the housing market still faces challenges such as high input and labour costs for builders, as well as expensive financing options for buyers.Read more

PNT Reporter

27 Apr 2023

The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) in Canada has released its first annual risk outlook report, identifying potential threats to the country's financial system in the fiscal year until March 31, 2024. According to the report, the two main risks are the possibility of a decline in the housing market and the challenge of adapting to sudden rises in interest rates. Other risks include the growth of unregulated non-bank financial institutions, climate-related risks, cyber-attacks, and hazards arising from emerging technologies.Read more

PNT Reporter

26 Apr 2023

Spain and Portugal, two of the poorest countries in western Europe, are looking to tackle the issue of soaring property costs by using a “bad bank” created during Spain’s most recent financial crisis to build up to 50,000 units of public housing. Spain’s Cabinet is set to approve a plan that would increase the number of public homes by 17% using properties from its bad bank. The Portuguese Government has approved plans to invest €2.4bn in public housing by the end of 2026 and presented a housing bill to parliament last week that would allow the state to convert vacant private properties into social housing.Read more

PNT Reporter

26 Apr 2023

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported that new home prices rose by 0.5% month-on-month in March, following a 0.3% increase in February. This marks the highest rate of growth since June 2021 and the third consecutive monthly increase. This is a positive indication of the market slowly recovering from it slump with the help of various supportive policies introduced by the government in the last year to tackle the crisis. However, the extent of this upward trend’s momentum remains uncertain.Read more

PNT Reporter

25 Apr 2023

Several businesses in Vietnam’s biggest cities such as, Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, have packed up and relocated during to soaring rents. Many believe the situation is partly due to a surge in inflation and economic pressure. Despite the current vacancy, real estate investors expect the lease price to rise, driven by the anticipated increase in demand as more foreign businesses migrate to Vietnam.Read more

PNT Reporter

25 Apr 2023

Sunac China Holdings Ltd, a real estate developer based in China, saw more than a 50% decrease in its market value upon the resumption of trade after being suspended for over a year. The decline occurred following the release of the company’s financial results and its agreement on a debt restructuring plan. The drop in share prices occurred one day after the company had announced to the Hong Kong stock exchange that it would resume trading and implement the debt restructuring plan.Read more

PNT Reporter

24 Apr 2023

Last week, the Ministry of Finance reported a decline in revenue from government land sales in China slowed for the month of March, thanks to various stimulus policies that boosted the confidence of developers. However, data from the same ministry showed that in the first quarter of this year, income from land sales, which is the primary means for local governments to raise funds, decreased by 27% compared to the same period in the previous year.Read more

PNT Reporter

24 Apr 2023

Earlier this month, Democratic Mayor Karen Bass of LA, made an announcement regarding the city’s severe homelessness crisis. She pledged to allocate a historic sum of $1.3 billion in the next budget to provide shelter and treatment programs for the unhoused individuals. This budget could potentially be utilized to purchase hotels or motels to convert into housing, and to identify other city-owned properties that could be used for sheltering the homeless.Read more