A report from the Star Weekly on Australia. "House prices in Sunbury and Macedon Ranges are feeling the effects of a wide-ranging downturn in the Victorian real estate market. Real estate agent Greg Czapnik said he had noted property prices in Sunbury had dropped more than $40,000 in the past five months. 'Median house prices in October last year were at the $540,000 mark,' he said. 'Today, they’re sitting on $496,000, so they’ve dropped off by 8.1 per cent roughly.'"

"'There are less buyers and the buyers are being more cautious, said Chess Property Consultants owner Liz Dormontt. 'Melbourne buyers are struggling to sell their houses – they are not getting their prices.'"

From Stuff New Zealand. "Property investors who are worried about the prospect of a capital gains tax are being told they may have only themselves to blame. In Auckland, it's common for property investors to get yields of 3 per cent on money invested in housing. That's before expenses are deducted."

"For 116,000 investors around the country, the cost of owning property is more than the income earnt. Many are left relying on capital gains to make the investment pay - and so the prospect of paying 33 per cent in tax on profits is hard for some to swallow."

"One investor, Graeme Fowler, agreed.  He said he would guess at least 70 per cent of investors were chasing capital gains and relied on prices going up to get ahead. 'Investing for capital gains is more like speculating. The investor buys a rental property with the hope that it will increase in value. If that does happen, they will often refinance the property and buy another one with the exact same intention.'"

"He said most of the investors following this style ended up selling earlier than they should and regretting it later. 'Already I'm hearing of investors wanting to sell now, especially in the likes of Auckland and Queenstown.'"

From Mingtiandi on Hong Kong. "A luxury house on Hong Kong’s Victoria Peak has reportedly sold at a 26.5 percent discount from the seller’s original asking price, after going unpurchased for the past seven months, according to local media accounts."

"House No 5 at 28 Barker Road, a billionaire’s retreat overlooking the city’s Hong Kong harbour, is said to have sold for between HK$610 million ($77.7 million) to HK$620 million according to brokers working in the neighbourhood."

From Globes on Israel. "Israel's luxury housing market is showing more signs of distress. A survey published by Levy Yitzhak, a leading Israeli real estate appraiser, indicates that owners of luxury properties realized in the past year that they would have to compromise on price in order to close deals."

"For example, in comparing deals in February 2019 to deals in February 2018 for five-room apartments in Tel Aviv, the average price for a five-room apartment fell from NIS 4.68 million in February 2018 to NIS 4.1 million in February 2019, a 12% drop."

"'The price of apartments with five or more rooms are falling steeply. Prices of special apartments, duplexes, and penthouses are in freefall, with falls of 15% and even more,' Yitzhak said."

"The price decreases in Herzliya were even greater. Prices of three-room apartments in the city dropped 12% to NIS 1.65 million, while prices of four-room apartments slid 10% to NIS 2.15 million. The survey states, 'The absence of foreign investors and residents greatly affects Herzliya. Both the number of deals and apartment prices declined very steeply. Move-up buyers are making deals, but are finding it difficult to bridge the difference between the apartments being sold and the new apartments being offered for sale.'"

From CTV News in Canada. "In Vancouver, where sky-high real estate prices have made ownership impossible for many, it’s suddenly not too difficult to live like a king. Author and housing advocate Kishone Roy found approximately 800 Vancouver-area mansions for rent on Craigslist for prices well below what they would normally command."

"Many of the mansions have ocean views and offer luxury amenities such as swimming pools, in-home cinemas, built-in saunas and wine cellars. In several cases, the homes are fully furnished."

"The city of Vancouver is facing a crisis in housing affordability, with one bedroom units averaging about $1,730 per month. But these rentals offer a single room in a multi-bedroom house for anywhere between $700 and $1,500, with more than 5,000 empty bedrooms available across the city."

"'Maybe the cheapest real estate right now is mansion rentals,' Roy said."

"It’s a situation that might not seem to make sense, but realtor Kevin Wang says the answer is a simple one. 'The speculator tax is really the big one,' Wang said. 'It hit the market.'"

"While many owners seem to be asking a monthly rent almost exactly the monthly tax cost, some seem to be open to taking much less. 'I thought I was imagining things until I called a mansion broker today and offered to rent one for $1 for the year,' Roy wrote. 'She quickly took my number, and even asked if there was a specific mansion I had in mind.'"