Is the property market finally recovering from its malaise?

There have been signs recently that prices in the major housing markets are ''stabilising,'' as economists like to say. But if there is a recovery taking place, the same analysts also admit that it's patchy, and a little precarious.

If we take a helicopter view of the economy, there have been tentative signs of an improvement in residential property lately.

In the September quarter, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said house prices rose in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. Nationally, annual price growth has also returned for the first time since March 2011.