Distressed property listings slow in Australia: Survey
Property agents in Poland, Russia, Canada and Brazil reported the biggest decline in the availability of distressed property during the 2011 first quarter.
The pace of distressed property listings also fell in Australia, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Scandinavia, according to an international survey.
Ireland, South Africa, the US and Spain reported the largest increase in the number of distressed property listings, according to the survey that tracks 25 commercial property markets across the globe.
It revealed that although the pace of rising distressed property levels slowed in the first quarter of 2011, rising interest rates in many markets posed new challenges and weighed heavily on the outlook for commercial property.
The survey also suggests that lenders are becoming less lenient with borrowers, as more countries reported that the speed at which lenders start foreclosing increased: 13 countries, up from 10 in the December 2010 quarter.
Of the 25 countries included in the report, 15 reported growing levels of distress, according to The Global Distressed Property Monitor, issued by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.
It found half the countries surveyed reported a moderation in the pace of distressed property listing coming to market, but that two-thirds are expecting an increase in distressed listings in the second quarter.
The RICS defines a distressed property as one that is under a foreclosure order or is advertised for sale by its mortgagee.
The report also found significant imbalances between the supply and demand for distressed properties.
In China, Hong Kong and South Africa, demand outweighs the expected supply, and the same is true to a lesser extent in Germany and Australia.
Survey questionnaires were sent to real-estate organisations in March, with 411 company responses received across the world.
