Member Article

House price confidence low in NE

The balance of Chartered Surveyors reporting house price falls increased even further in April, with the North East particularly gloomy, according to recent figures.

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors’ (RICS) latest UK housing market survey showed that house price balance dropped for the ninth month in succession. 95.1 percent more Chartered Surveyors reported a fall than a rise in house prices, an increase from 79.4 percent in March. In the North East 100% of surveyors said that house prices are falling.

Richard Sayer, RICS North East spokesman on housing, said: “Prices have fallen 10% since August 2007 and sales volumes are down 25%, but supply and demand are in reasonable harmony. The market faces two major challenges. The first is that banks are not lending on perfectly normal house loans, which is the main constriction point in the sales process, and the second is relentless media pessimism which is causing increased doubt and uncertainty.”

Ian Perry, national RICS spokesperson, said: “Although most surveyors are now seeing price declines, the extent of the fall, is at this stage, quite modest. The real issue is the collapse in the number of housing transactions. This has very real implications, not just for the property industry but also the high street and the wider economy.

“Sellers of white goods are likely to suffer if this low level of turnover persists for much longer. This is a key reason why the Bank of England should act at its next meeting by cutting the base rate.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .