World House Prices growing by 8.5% but where's No 1? Article Published: 13:21 18/08/2006 Article Classification: Smolyan Pamporovo Pine Lodge Apartments
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According to a report out recently the number one place for property growth over the last 12 months is Eastern Europe.

Eastern European property prices are rising faster than anywhere else in the world, according to a survey by estate agency Knight Frank, cited by the Financial Times.

The global index, compiled by the Knight Frank, shows global property price inflation running at 8.5% in the year to June, below the 12.3% in the year to June 2005 but sharper than the 6.1 per cent inflation rate recorded in March.

In Bulgaria growth was buoyant with speculation and interest from foreign second-home buyers helping maintain house price inflation at 20.5%, the agency said.

Knight Frank predicts that Slovenia and Slovakia will be the eastern European hot spots in the year ahead, while Moscow will rival London as the world's most expensive city within the next five years. Property prices in Germany, where inflation is 0.5%, are also expected to see sustained growth as the economy continues to recover.

Property prices in Riga, the Latvian capital, surged by 45.3% in the year to June, after a gain of 73.5% the preceding year.

The overall picture from the survey is one of moderated growth, with house price inflation in the US falling from 14.1% a year earlier to 9.4%, that of France slipping from 15.3 to 9.4%, China from 8 to 5.8%, Italy from 11.2 to 5.2% and the UK from 6.1 to 4.8%.

The Knight Frank index, which covers 30 countries or capital cities, is based on official statistics or local survey data.