But you and Scamp are saying we are yet to follow in the footsteps of the US where interest rates have come down…then you're also saying ours will keep going up…excuse me for ending up confused about the logic behind your comments.

Well, I've been keeping an eye on some properties lately and as I was checking my saved list on the weekend, I saw that 5-6 of them were sold in the last two weeks, so it's not like people have stopped buying. I do see more properties coming on the market in my neighbourhood, nothing more than what I regard as normal, and a lot of them are getting snapped up in a week or so. I think I'm going to record perhaps the number of internet listings in my area on a weekly basis and see what that suggests.
So it's Monday, 19 May and the total number is 124 – very low still compared to let's say what it was 2-3 years ago. I'll have a look next Monday.
Anyway, we all wish we could predict the market's movements but if we're going to follow in the US' footsteps then we're looking at lower interest rates, which are clearly not in sight at the moment, so perhaps we are as Tony says coupled to the emerging Asian economies and are at a different time of the cycle. Those who maybe haven't noticed, we did have pricedrops and a plateau for example between 2003 November and 2007, here in Victoria anyway.

The official cash rate in the US is 2% and it could stay flat for the rest of the year.
In Australia it's 7.25% and still no signs of easing.

Roll on the property market crash!  I would much rather hold property than cash when rates are starting to fall. Yes, a seasoned investor will survive and even make money in down-trending markets. I notice, even Scamp is planning to invest in Australian real estate soon

As for gold, there are equal numbers of bears and bulls.

It's tempting to draw a comparison with the American and UK (or even the NZ) market but the situation is a bit more complex here. For example, NZ's net migration is in decline whilst we continue to grow. Or aside commodities, Australia can benefit from increasing food prices (just look at the price of dairy products) that could result from the global recession. But the strongest indication of a market trend is always the levels of supply/demand and this is telling me that any bargains should be picked up this year

What if you have bought a block in November, then build a house on it and sell it a year later?

vicgirl

I thought building on a subdivided 1/4 acre would be a costly exercise but after a brief look at the first quote for a 17 SQ house I am definitely inclined to put the backyard up for sale, rather than pouring $250K or who knows how much more into the project and come out with a house worth $300-320K.