International investors, local "smart money" and the aspirational classes are combining to create a mini property boom in Perth's western suburbs, industry sources say.

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Tenants in St Lucia, Breakfast Creek, Fairfield and Stones Corner have the best rental deal in Brisbane's inner city, with the relative flattening of the rental market, new data shows.

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HOME buyers should brace themselves for intense competition and price rises as Melbourne heads into its strongest spring property market since the 2007 boom, industry experts say.

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The nation's most expensive houses are in Perth, with the coastal municipality of Cottesloe trumping inner-Sydney's Mosman in a ranking of municipal median prices.

A report by RP Data has found Cottesloe's median house price is $2 million, ahead of Mosman's $1.92 million.

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The scaling back of the first-home owners' grant will significantly impact prices at the lower end of the market, a survey predicts.

But Sydney and Melbourne residential property markets on the whole are on the road to recovery with the upturn expected to continue through to 2011, the survey respondents believe.

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National house prices have risen further in the June quarter, with a recovery at the higher end of the market matching strength at the bottom end.

House prices gained 3.3 per cent in the June quarter, the strongest quarterly growth since the global financial crisis began withering asset values, Australian Property Monitors said overnight.

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HOMEOWNERS face fines of up to $220,000 for underquoting their property's expected auction price, in a radical shake-up of real estate law.

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THE Australian consumer watchdog says real estate agencies involved in under-quoting and dummy bidding will be hit with fines of up to $1.1 million from January 1.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Graeme Samuel said a new Australian Consumer Law is aimed at any businesses involved in misleading and deceptive conduct, including real estate agents.

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AN unlicensed Victorian real estate agency, its directors and its agent's representative have avoided criminal prosecution after the company agreed to forfeit $150,000 in commissions.

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A growing number of Chinese people are taking advantage of a relaxation in Australia's foreign investment laws to buy property in Melbourne.

Real estate agents in the eastern suburbs report that up to half the buyers this year have been part-time residents from China, Hong Kong or Taiwan, or Asian companies buying accommodation for their staff.

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