"The property values have reflected changes in interest rates and risk.
"Unrest in the financial markets and uncertainty in the wider economy have added to the crisis of the property market."
Fair or Unfair?
Under 'fair value' accounting rules - which permit asset values to be brought into a firm's profit and loss account whether or not they are actually sold and cash received - many companies have reported high profits in boom years.
But when central bank monetary policy tightens (money printing slows) and interest rates go up, asset-price-inflation can reverse.
The 'fair value' concept goes against a time honoured accounting convention, based on historical cost.
Critics have said that fair