The American housing market wasn’t expected to see many gains over the 2012/13 years, however, the opposite happened, and it improved at a rather fast rate. Over 4.2 million homes were sold in 2012, close to the 5.5 million average just a year before the crash.   At the beginning of the year, high numbers of homes were still foreclosing, leading some individuals to think prices would fall or remain stagnant. “Housing was clearly one of last year’s greatest surprises,” said one U.S. Chief Economist in a recent Fiscal Times article. The foreclosures actually ended up helping, because the negative equity assisted to revive hard hit markets. Other factors that aided housing recovery included: …

How 'Real' is the Real Estate Recovery in America? Financial management company Merrill Lynch recently tackled this question in their online video series. Senior U.S. Economist Michelle Meyer discussed the changes to the American market, and the assurances potential property investors could take in the direction it’s heading.  “House prices were up 5% in 2012 and we’re on for a similar size gain in 2013,” she said. Looking forward from there, they predicted that in the following 10 years, prices would continue to appreciate upwards, and make a gain of 40% over that time. That’s a yearly average of just over 3% per annum, which is close to the national historic average, she noted.  She agre…

One of our recent articles looked at Warren Buffett's growing confidence in the American property market. Given his extensive knowledge, it seemed a good idea to offer investors more of his thoughts. In a recent University address, he stressed that individuals choosing property investment should never act irrationally. Also, sometimes people will need to work a little harder to get the best deals. The ultimate key to success however, said Buffett, was emotional stability. Here are a few other points of note:   Explaining your overall investing strategy. “Invest in equities slowly over time.  And invest in yourself.  Enhance your own talents and weaknesses.  Sit on cash if there are no good…