photo credit: stevecadman
Property investment buyers waiting for the bottom of the UK market may have to wait until well into 2009, new figures suggest.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) released its 2009 housing forecast, saying it expects a total price decline of at least 25 per cent.
However, sales numbers, as opposed to prices, may already have hit bottom, and the UK could see a 10 per cent increase in transactions next year.
The forecast attracted extra market attention after two big British lenders, Nationwide and The Halifax, said they would not be releasing 2009 price predictions.
RICS chief economist Simon Rubinsohn said:
“Lenders are likely to remain cautious in the near-term in the absence of any ‘guarantees’ on mortgage backed securities.
“This, coupled with an increasingly gloomy economic picture, suggests that house prices will continue to decline in 2009.
“However, transaction levels do seem to have hit a floor with some signs that opportunistic investors are returning to the market.”
He added there were concerns over a reduction in the number of new homes being built, which may cause a serious shortage.
This could once again make the market volatile after the current crisis eases, he warned.
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