Though the latest statistics for February suggest the housing boom may be having a breather, the numbers are still pretty giddying, and with interest rates set to fall further, the question is when or why it might end.

The real estate industry is clamping down on its own members and has brought a string of proceedings against licensed property managers who have stolen money and broken rules.

MELBOURNE: Fat banking fees, lots of merger activity and happy stockholders. Australian property companies are becoming a rare hot spot in the world of finance.

In uncertain times like these, shares in quality property companies come into their own.

A whistle-blowing engineer's warning that some new pre-cast concrete high-rise buildings could be earthquake death traps has been bolstered by research at the University of Canterbury.

The housing market should come off the boil in the second half of this year and mortgage rates should fall, but there are some risks to that assessment according to Macquarie Bank economist Roland Randall.

Auckland City leaders have approved rates increases up to 21 per cent from July 1.

Opting to buy a home on leasehold land raises many issues and means confronting complexities that don’t exist with freehold property.

The war in Iraq is pushing interest rates higher and fixed loan rates are following.

Recent trends in global wholesale financial markets suggest would-be home owners should hurry to snap up the low fixed rate deals currently on offer, although whether these trends continue is entirely dependent on the outcome of the US/Iraqi war.

Since the bombs started falling on Bag

The Property Council says commercial property in New Zealand continues to provide strong returns, with figures for 2002 showing healthy increases.

Wellington's property market has continued its strong performance, with the median house price last month jumping 7.5 per cent compared with February last year.

The state of property present and future is outlined in a study which looks at the shape of Auckland over the next 50 years.

The national median house price rose to match its November record in February although there are some indications that house price inflation may be moderating.

Traffic Jams and Asian students bolster demand for CBD appartments while transforming Auckland into a 24-hour city, Auckland's inner-city apartments are hard to come by as foreign language students vie with young professionals for a space in the city.

National, ACT and New Zealand First have opposed moves to bring boarding house operators under tenancy laws.

Leaky-home owner Mark Swayne says the Government's latest building industry package is like reaching for a sledgehammer to kill an ant.