Global property markets on the turn

Australia's housing market is witnessing its steepest annual fall in 15 years. In Sydney, prices are down 10 percent in a year. House prices in Sydney doubled in a decade on the back of Australia's booming economy, with the median price still being an eyewatering 1,062,619 Australian dollars (€668,391, $762,391). But tighter lending criteria for mortgages have helped fuel the drop.

Bangkok condominiums have been popular with Chinese investors over the past five years, with prices rising at 5-10 percent per annum. A building boom has, however, left 40,000 units unsold, with another 53,000 new apartments to be launched this year. While properties in other Asian cities have doubled in value as a result of limited land space, the Thai capital has plenty of room to grow — and is.

Once a safe haven for wealthy Chinese, Russian and Middle Eastern property investors, interest in the British capital continues to wane due to the uncertainty over Brexit. London prices fell for the second year in a row in 2018 (Nationwide). Many newer apartment blocks are lying empty, and more than 500 new developments currently being built across the city, so further falls are expected.

A property price slowdown is underway in several Chinese cities, which last year led to some speculators protesting outside real estate developers' offices. With property price-to-income ratios in Beijing and Shanghai hitting 23, analysts have long questioned how long the boom can continue. Several provinces have shelved plans to build more affordable housing amid a severe glut.

A 15-year Canadian real estate bubble, which saw prices increase by 337 percent, has come to an end. Vancouver is hit hardest; the Royal Bank of Canada describes the west coast city as in "full blown correction mode." Sales plunged by a third in 2018 and prices have already fallen close to 10 percent. Prices in Toronto are so far holding up better due to domestic and global demand.

Turkey's currency and interest rate crisis last year brought the property market to a standstill. The lira fell 40 percent against the US dollar and the interest rate rose to 24 percent. As a result, there was an 80 percent drop in mortgage approvals. Istanbul, meanwhile, has suffered from a property oversupply for years. Some investors have been tempted by low prices in foreign currencies.

Property experts in Singapore expect prices to fall up to 5 percent in 2019 after cooling measures were introduced by the government following four years of strong growth. The city-state is increasingly experimenting with some unusual designs for residential properties, including Keppel Bay which has six glass towers of 1,129 units, overlooking the resort island of Sentosa.

A correction in Hong Kong's property market is gathering speed, and not too soon for many residents. The Chinese territory has been named as the world's least affordable real estate market for a ninth consecutive year. Prices have dropped more than 7 percent since the summer and some analysts expect a further fall of up to 15 percent in 2019.