WCT Bhd is a latecomer to the Vietnam property market — and that may be a very good thing.

In the Vietnam property market game, it is the unusual case of better late than early, rather than the other way round, as many players who flocked there earlier have found out.

TOPEKA, Kansas (Jan 27): In July 2009, Roy and Sheila Bowers refinanced the mortgage on their suburban ranch home in Topeka. The couple wanted to take advantage of the low interest rates that were all the rage at the time.

JACKSONVILLE, Florida (Jan 27): Republicans presidential candidates have taken a hands-off policy on the US housing crisis. At a debate on Thursday in Florida, it devolved into finger pointing.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 27): Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said on Friday he hopes that the Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) will expedite the issuing of the certificate of fitness (CF) for the Alam Prima apartment project in Shah Alam.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 27): I&P Group Sdn Bhd's first property launches for the year have chalked up strong sales.

The developer recently  held three launches for its ongoing township developments in Selangor namely in Bandar Baru Seri Petaling, Bayuemas in Klang and Alam Sari in Bangi.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 27): Despite the lingering economic uncertainty in Vietnam, construction firm WCT Bhd is confident of the long-term prospects of its property venture in the third most populated Southeast Asian nation.

LOS ANGELES/ATLANTA (Jan 26): Wells Fargo & Co on Wednesday announced a pilot programme to stimulate home buying in Los Angeles and Atlanta, which were drubbed by the US financial crisis.

LONDON (Jan 25): HSBC said it will make £15 billion (RM72.04 billion) available for UK homeowners to borrow this year, potentially providing 150,000 mortgages and likely to increase its share of business in a shrinking market.

HSBC said its planned lending includes £3 billion for first-time buyers, potentially for about 27,000 borrowers.

WASHINGTON, DC (Jan 25): Would-be American home-buyers can take heart: US housing is more affordable than in other English-speaking countries, according to a study of metropolitan areas around the world.

DUBLIN (Jan 25): The decline in Irish residential property prices accelerated last year to 16.7% from 10.5% in 2010, data on Tuesday showed, as a weak domestic economy and low mortgage lending continued to hit demand.

Irish property prices rocketed before the property bubble burst in 2008, leaving banks with huge losses and homeowners with hefty mortgage repayments.