PatientRenter: Yes, there was a common thread to all the bubble housing markets in different countries, and that was the sheer, unreasoning buying mentality that marks a runup and eventually a top. As prices become unconnected to incomes and rents and buyers look only to recent price trends to justify their purchase, the tipping point is reached and the collapse commences.
Different factors can fuel the upsurge. For Australia it was clearly their mineral resources (& proximity to Asian buyers thereof), trusted capitalistic government, tourism, etc. For Britain & Ireland it may have been immigration, land shortages, and a high-cost-to-build environment, among other factors. For all countries, it was the carry-trade and resulting cheap borrowing atmosphere.
