THE WORLD PROPERTY JOURNAL

According to a new report released today from The American Institute of Architects, U.S. demand for design services in July 2019 remained essentially flat in comparison to the previous month.

Existing-home sales in the U.S. strengthened in July 2019, a positive reversal after total sales were down slightly in the previous month. Although Northeast transactions declined, the other three major U.S. regions recorded sales increases, including vast growth in the West last month.

A typical family in the San Francisco area would need to nearly triple their annual income to comfortably purchase a median-priced home. In stark contrast, the typical family in Detroit earns more than twice as much as they'd need to afford a median-priced home.

According to the National Association of Home Builders, U.S. builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes rose one point to 66 in August 2019, based on the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) released this past week.

According to Freddie Mac's latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey for mid-August 2019, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rate in the U.S. averaged 3.60 percent, unchanged from last week.

The changes, many of which NAR has championed for over a decade, should yield thousands of new homeownership opportunities and help alleviate affordability restraints impacting markets across the country.

Slovenia is home to the world's fastest rising house prices with average values accelerating 18.2% year-on-year. Falling unemployment, low interest rates and until recently, limited supply, are behind the strong price growth.

Panama, the winner of the 2019 Global Retirement Index, has been a constant in the Index, but this year marks the 10th time it's reached the #1 spot--climbing from third place to scoop the top prize.

According to a new Global Retirement Index by International Living Magazine, Costa Rica won the top spot for U.S. expats to retire in 2018.

Panama-based Red Frog Beach Island Resort & Spa announced this week the resort's newest amenity, La Rosa Beach Club. The new addition features event and meeting spaces, a bar, a restaurant, a stunning waterfall and an infinity-edge pool.

According to InternationalLiving.com's 2018 Global Retirement Index, Costa Rica takes the top spot for the first time in the index's history.

The recent 7.1 magnitude earthquake that stunned Mexico City (and surrounding states of Mexico, Morelos and Puebla) is now having a strong impact on Mexico's commercial real estate market.

Knight Franks' latest Prime Global Cities Index, which tracks the movement in luxury residential prices across 46 International cities, increased by 1.4% in the year to June 2019, up marginally from 1.3% in March 2019 but still significantly lower than its four-year average of 3.8%.

According to HVS London, AlixPartners and STR, London hotels collective RevPAR rose 6% in Q2 2019 on the back of visitors traveling to the capital to watch the ICC Cricket World Cup and the Major League Baseball.

According to global property advisor Knight Frank, sentiment is the key driver of activity in prime regional markets in the U.K.. Uncertainty surrounding the UK's political landscape means discretionary buyers and sellers are cautious. Consequently, pricing has been subdued and stock levels are muted.

According to global real estate consultant JLL, three outlet centres are currently under construction in the Russia's capital, two of them with a total area of 61,000 square meters will enter the market this year.

According to UK's Office for National Statistics, which tracks internal moves within the UK, migration from London to other parts of the UK reached its highest ever level in 2018.

According to Daft.ie latest Ireland Sales Report, home prices in the second quarter of 2019 were 3.7% higher than a year previously, the lowest rate of inflation since late 2013.

Hong Kong's central region office vacancy rate rises to a three-year high as commercial tenants are now delaying expansion plans.

Global real estate consultant JLL is reporting this week that after a bumpy 2018, investment in global commercial real estate cooled in the first half of 2019 with year-on-year volumes dropping by 9% to $341 billion.

Significant changes are in play in Japan's office market in 2019. The three most cited reasons for workplace change were "to accommodate varied work styles", "to improve productivity", and "to improve employee satisfaction."

According to new research by global real estate consultant JLL, smart city initiatives in Asia Pacific will not reach their potential if they focus on delivering cutting-edge technologies without paying enough attention to the needs and experiences of citizens.

Global commercial property consultant CBRE is reporting that in recent years, the main retail areas of Tokyo have seen an increase in pop-up stores - short-term sales spaces aimed to promote new product launches or cater to seasonal demand.

Only two remaining residential sites to be tendered on the Kai Tak runway could enjoy Victoria Harbour views after the government awarded the tender for Kai Tak Area 4C Site 1 site.

According to the Property Monitor's latest Dubai House Price Index, the average annual house price in Dubai decreased by 12% in March 2019, with some communities registering even higher price declines.

According to the latest Dubai House Price Index, the average annual home price in Dubai decreased by 10.6% in February 2019, with some communities registering even higher price declines.

According to STR, hotels in the Middle East reported negative April 2018 performance results, while hotels in Africa posted growth across the three key performance metrics.

The Abu Dhabi property market heavily favored renters and buyers in Q1 of 2018, with market data showing price decreases in all areas. both apartments and villas across the sales and rental sectors became increasingly affordable in Q1.

According to STR, hotels across the Middle East reported mixed Q1 2018 performance results, while hotels in Africa posted growth across the three key performance metrics.

Residential rents across Dubai registered no change during the first quarter of 2018, helping improve the annual rate of change to -3.1%, from -7.7% at the end of last year.