A report from the Toronto Sun in Canada. "For the first time in a very long while, you’re hearing talk of a return to a 'balanced market' in which there is sufficient supply to meet demand. This isn’t something that you’re broadly seeing yet in the freehold market, though there are certainly some great houses selling for less than one would think for no discernible reason, but it’s plainly evident that the condo market has flipped. There is so much supply that it’s hard to even keep up with the flood of new listings. Lofts and condos that would have sold in a bidding war just weeks ago are now languishing on the market with only a handful of showings."

"To see if the widely anticipated 'mortgage cliff' that economists warned us about would really come to pass once the payment vacations and deferral programs ended. At that point, there would surely be a rise in distress sales. Three weeks into September, it seems safe to say that there are some changes afoot. As my colleague put it, 'the tectonic plates are shifting and you can feel it.'"

From The Guardian in the UK. "Private rents in some parts of London have tumbled by up to 20% as tenants quit the capital, the number of international students plummets and companies put relocation plans on hold. A glut of rental properties on the market means many landlords have had to slash rents in order to attract tenants. And the phenomenon is not restricted to London. Data released by estate agent Hamptons this month showed that demand from people looking to rent in city locations across Britain is down 23%."

"Other factors helping to push down rents are corporate relocations being put on hold in the wake of the pandemic, and Airbnb investors, starved of tourists, deciding to put their flats on to the longer-term rental market."

The New York Times on Ireland. "The coronavirus has sent a chill through Ireland’s once-frenzied housing market, particularly Airbnb listings, which have been hit by a collapse in tourism. That drop, along with an exodus of people from overseas leaving Dublin because of the pandemic, has created a surge in available rental properties in the Irish capital. In a city where lines to view rental properties have regularly trailed around the block, the new tenants could hardly believe their luck."

"When Aoife Brannigan, 25, and her partner, Shaun Gribben, 25, began their search in earnest at the start of the year, he said, 'I remember every day I was given around 60 properties — and once this kicked in, it literally doubled.'"

From Reuters. "Before the coronavirus pandemic hit Russia, pensioner Elena rented out her one-bedroom apartment in the Moscow suburbs to help make ends meet. The 18,000-rouble monthly rent, nearly $240 at the current exchange rate, provided her with almost as much income as her retirement benefits. But when restrictions to curb COVID-19 started taking a toll on the economy, Elena’s tenants suffered a drop in income and asked her to reduce the rent to 10,000 roubles ($132). In June, they moved out and went back to their hometown outside Moscow."

"'We’ve lowered the price to 16,000 roubles, we’ve been publishing the ad for three months and still can’t let this flat,' said Elena, who is 56. 'Potential tenants say it is still too pricey even though that’s the average price. Demand has dropped, we don’t get many calls.'"

"Like many Russians, landlords and real estate agents are finding it hard to make financial plans. 'Many clients of mine lost their tenants after the quarantine measures: They just fled home and never came back. But those landlords who cut prices by 20-30% compared with early this year have found new tenants again,' said 42-year-old estate agent Tatiana Shotova from Moscow."

From Domain News in Australia. "The pain is just beginning for Melbourne’s inner-city apartment investors amid the pandemic, experts warn. The closure of international borders in March saw demand for CBD apartments drop significantly, as overseas students, new migrants and holiday makers stopped flying in. Ongoing COVID-19-related lockdowns have seen Melbourne’s property market effectively shut down. As mortgage holidays come to an end early next year, investors hit by job losses, lower or no rental income and the inability to get new tenants may sell up – likely adding to already high supply and putting downward pressure on prices, Charter Keck Cramer director Angie Zigomanis said."

"'There are probably investors out there who haven’t had a tenant in months,' Mr Zigomanis said. 'Maybe some are holding on by the skin of their teeth.'"

From Stuff New Zealand. "Harry Pearson has built up a portfolio of five properties in the Nelson region over the last 12 years, which include his own home. But property investment is 'not a free-ride' short-term money-maker, he said. His cashflow 'flat lines or negatives,' he said, having to top up the mortgages. He said, to break it down, spending $600,000 on a three-bedroom house with a three per cent interest rate would cost about $350 a week in interest only. 'Add rates, insurance, maintenance, legal fees and property management; the total cost per week to own it is about $580. If you’ve got tenants paying less than $600, you’re not going anywhere.'"

"'I’ve generally found that the only real upside of property investment is the capital gain, if it wasn’t for that it wouldn’t be worth doing.'"