Dropping bricks

A runaway boom in property prices has gone into reverseIF ANY market has been distorted by the activities of the rich over the past decade, it must surely have been property. For a while it seemed as if the plutocrats were competing against each other to pay the silliest prices for the smartest locations.Even though prices are now retreating, in some areas they still seem over the top. A two-bedroom apartment in Monaco shown to The Economist did have a view of the bay, but it was not helped by an elevated highway bang in front and a noisy building site next door, and the kitchen was tiny. The price was a staggering