House prices in the US are plunging at their fastest rate for 12 years, leaving millions of people struggling to meet home loans.

Overpowering doggy smells are the biggest turn-off for prospective buyers viewing a home, according to an online poll.

Over R3-billion was allocated to meet housing delivery needs in Gauteng, provincial housing minister Nomvula Mokonyane said on Tuesday.

ANC MP Rose Sonto, also the head of the South African National Civic Organisation in the Western Cape, this week repeated unsubstantiated allegations that foreigners are buying government-subsidised houses and forcing South Africans to live in shacks.

Headlines showing a 13,2% fall in house prices combined with 400% increases in the number of house repossessions are enough to send panic through the market. But these numbers are misleading, creating an uglier picture than is necessarily the case.