Major property investment funds are looking to the Far East and Asia as the best bets in the current global economic downturn.

Residential property prices throughout the world are continuing to fall although in a few areas there are still rises, according to the latest global report.

Occupier demand is weakening across European office markets and vacancies are beginning to rise but some countries are seeing small increases despite the general downward trend, according to the latest report from analysts.

Global sales of commercial property fell by 49% in the first half of this year as sales in developed countries were hit hard by the credit crunch, according to a new report.

The world's two largest property services firms suffered severe profit falls in the second quarter of this year as a direct result of the credit crunch.

Real estate agents and developers are coming up with new ways of enticing property investors in an attempt to avoid the worst of the global credit crunch.

The global credit crunch isn't affecting property as much as predicted and one expert is even claiming that talk of an international downturn have been exaggerated.

Emerging property markets may not see as much growth as anticipated next year as food and fuel costs adds to the financial woes of would be investors, according to the latest analysis.

The key to making money in international real estate is diversification and not putting all your eggs in one basket, according to a global federation.

According to the latest research from Colliers International, there should be a slow but steady recovery in investment volumes in the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East & Africa) in the second half of 2008, following the sharp decline in transactions that resulted from the credit crunch.

The dramatic shifts taking place in the global second-home market gives a picture of turmoil, making it difficult for property investors to know where to put their money.

The next decade is going to bring a boom in second home ownership according to a well respected new study.

Cars, mortgage perks, holidays and even cash back are being offered by developers desperate to sell their new build properties in areas hit by the downturn in the property markets.

The collapse of the housing bubble in the United States is mutating into a global phenomenon, with real estate prices down from the Irish countryside and the Spanish coast to Baltic seaports and even in parts of India.

It's not just about knowing when to invest, but also where to invest that matters. Several locations seem to offer exactly what is needed for the property investor in the US. 

The nose-dive in commercial property in most of the developed markets of the world can be traced to the second half of 2007 when investment started to fall by a noticeable amount with the effects of that fall carrying on into 2008. However, in many of the developed property markets (e.g. Europe), property actually hit a peak in terms of investment in 2007 as well. The duality of property is that the markets reversed in a very short amount of time.

According to many experts, developed property markets that have experienced hefty downturns are not necessarily down for the count,.

At the moment, Egypt is very hot property market, but one that is not immune to the global property slowdown. 

Despite a property market that has grown over the previous year, global uncertainty is making many investors stop to think.

In the United States, England, Australia and many other developed economies, property slumps have led to a loss of investor confidence and trust in property firms.

The act of profit taking on the part of cautious or panicky investors has hurt companies in multiple countries. At the end of the business day on Friday, indexes in both Indonesia and Japan had fallen, largely on the back of profit taking from property firms.

Total investment in China is expected to be 20% larger over the first three months of the year, mainly due to the strength of the property industry. This news comes as a surprise to some analysts as these results were achieved even in the face of the global credit crunch and the resulting lack of liquidity in the market.

While property funds and share purchases have both been down in the short term, it is quite possible that they still present a good long term investment.

While property investing in the United States has all but come to a stand still, there are still several markets that are offering new opportunities that could pay off in either the long or short run.

Several countries in Latin America and Europe will face increasingly fragile economies should the tourism sector fall there.

The UAE is still exploding as the premier property investment destination worldwide. Along with the Middle East and Asia, places in Eastern Europe (i.e. Sofia, Bulgaria) are starting to emerge as well.

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) are an easy way for people to pool resources with investors they don't even know in order to get a bigger return on their investment through big ticket investment strategies.

Recent trends in developed property markets do not seem to favour investment in those markets on the surface. However, deeper analysis shows that in many property markets (such as those in the US and UK), investing might still be a good idea.

Debating over the general future of property investment worldwide, the pro-property side seems to be winning right now.

With many reporting on the global credit crunch and the property exodus, every now and then it is a good idea to step back and examine what really is going on.

With property stocks and direct property investment tumbling all over the world, it might just be that we have reached the end of the era of safe investment.

With so many different property markets emerging around the world, the news that property as a whole is expected to have a bad year is somewhat disheartening.

People that are investing in Asian property markets as a way to guard against crashes back home should be very careful before doing so.

In spite of all of the advice from analysts and fund managers, it appears as if property market volatility has scared the average private investor past the critical point.

Once again, events have taken place that illustrates the point that even a market downturn can be a good thing under the right circumstances.

Even with the drawbacks, confidence in property markets worldwide remains relatively high given the circumstances.

Desperate times for some property investors call for desperate measures, and property investors are being forced to look at other investment alternatives.

With financial catastrophe seemingly waiting around every corner, it appears as though Morocco might be one of the all around good points.

The cagier property companies are the ones that are going to make money, while most people will end up losing.

According to several investment experts and some world leaders, the worst is yet to come in the US economy and European investments.

In the wake of massive housing downturns all over the developed world, the eco effect might help some of those countries get back on track.

As more bad news hits investors in the property market, first-time buyers start to get some bad news.

While the Western property markets are certainly in decline, it is not all gloom and doom in either the public or private sectors.

As the emerging markets continue to gain ground and carry the international property market, many investors are wondering about the strategies they should pursue for their domestic property investments.

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) continue their rise in popularity throughout the world of property investors.

The biggest debate currently going on in the property market has progressively gotten more confusing.

Amidst fears of many bad things happening to the international property market in 2008, there do appear to be isolated bright spots.

There is at least one group of people that have been virtually unaffected by the worldwide credit crunch.

With conditions starting to improve slightly and different people stepping in to pick up the slack of a severe credit crunch in western property markets, it is possible that the world credit crunch might come to an end a lot sooner than people previously thought.

Despite credit problems around the world, the global property market is still hot.