In brief

More Marbella homes than previously estimated face demolition with developers and others protesting against the bulldozing of up to 23,000 occupied homes.

Of developments investigated, over 3,400 properties have been built on land that should have been reserved for green space and public amenities, Andalucía regional assembly member Luciano Alonso has revealed. Some 52 developments (involving approximately 2,400 homes), were for construction on green zones and a further 19 (involving 1,052 homes) were for building on land reserved for roads and the like.

Meanwhile court cases arising from Marbella’s discredited planning regime dating back to the administration of its controversial mayor Jesús Gil y Gill continue to go through the courts. The latest involves an appeal by Julian Muñoz, a former Marbella mayor and one time Gill deputy, who with others is challenging a possible prison sentence and ban on holding public for illegally granting building permission in 1999 for 150 homes to be build on green zoned land.

Among the witnesses called to give evidence to the Málaga court was the former Marbella planning consultant Juan Antonio Roca, who is himself currently in jail waiting trail on his alleged leading role in the latest Marbella planning scandal. Roca faces charges alleging money laundering, tax evasion, bribery and corruption. Over 20 others, including the latest mayor of Marbella, Marisol Yagüe, and her deputy Isabel Garcia Marcos, have also been charged with offences connected with the alleged fraud.

Roca told the court he had not been responsible for approving planning applications when Gil was Mayor and that the now dead business tycoon had demanded applications be approved in accordance with his own revised local development plan. Muñoz had taken a similar line, blaming Gil but also Roca, saying he merely rubber stamped their recommendations.

Meanwhile there have been growing protests about the hold put by the committee appointed to run Marbella on construction projects that do not comply with the regional planning outline. Developers and building unions are expecting lay offs as a result of the move.

Record residential property sales have reported by the Edmonton Real Estate Board. The may total of 2,565 home sales exceeded the number of new listings, with properties selling in an average of 20 days - compared with 46 days in May 2005. The average selling price was £117,800, and that for single family dwellings was £136,800. Average prices in the Edmonton were up 23 per cent on the year.

Serbia is making moves to make mortgage finance more readily available in the country. The Minister of International Economic Relations, Milan Parivodic said he would be working with the Foreign Investors Council to simplify the law.

So far nobody has been refused land registration following a crackdown on the use of shell companies by overseas investors to acquire land in Thailand, the head of the Phuket Provincial Land Office has confirmed. The change, made last month, caused uproar, but Supot Suwannachote said there was no problem with companies that had a Thai managing director or joint managing director and the most that had been done in the case of companies with foreign shareholders was to make further checks.

The official said the registry did not wish to see a slowdown in Phuket’s booming property industry and in the case of companies that were genuinely 51 per cent Thai-owned there was ‘no problem’.

New rules aimed at curbing foreign speculation in property are likely in China. It is reported the country’s Securities for Foreign Exchange Administration has already begun to strengthen its supervision following an increase in overseas property investment. In 2005 some £1.8bn was pumped into property.