  Nova rates have now been measured for more than a dozen galaxies spanning a
wide range of Hubble types. When normalized to the infrared K-band luminosity
of the galaxy, the luminosity-specific nova rates typically fall in the range
of 1-3 novae per year per 10^10 solar luminosities in K, and do not vary
significantly across the Hubble sequence. Preliminary nova rates are presented
for three Virgo ellipticals (M49, M84, and M87) with differing globular cluster
specific frequencies. No dependence of the luminosity-specific nova rate on
globular cluster specific frequency was found. Photometric and spectroscopic
observations of novae in the Local Group suggest that galaxies dominated by a
younger stellar population (M33 and the LMC) are characterized by novae with a
generally faster photometric evolution, and by a higher fraction of He/N novae
compared with novae in M31. The recurrent nova population in the LMC appears to
be higher than that seen in M31 and the Galaxy.
