A recent report out in the US has suggested that the property market is still struggling to cope with the ongoing pressures created by the global economic crisis. The S & P/Case Shiller Index of Home Values report states the average property prices in United States fell further in February and any point over the past 12 months. The report, which provides an index of average home values across 20 cities throughout the US showed a decrease in average values of 3.3% for the previous 12 months to February 2011, the largest fall since November 2009.

Throughout the United States property market there are also a large number of foreclosures adding to the inventory of unsold properties. Understandably, this has the adverse effect of deterring people from buying current prices as they anticipate further decreases in average property prices.

The current uncertainty in US property market however does present a significant opportunity for overseas investors seeking to capitalise on a large number of heavily discounted properties available. The significant discounts represent the opportunity the significant capital appreciation and considerable rental yields in the years to come for people able to make investments at the current time.

Despite the gloom in the US property market, there are signs of sustained recovery beginning to take shape. Overall consumer confidence is slowly beginning to climb, and just last week the Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index showed significant increases as did the Thomson Reuters Preliminary Consumer Sentiment Index. With unemployment in the US currently sitting at near 9%, there is undoubtedly a long way to go before consumer confidence reaches more tangible levels, however it does seem as though the green shoots of recovery beginning to appear in US property market.