There are further signs of gradually improving health in the housing market, with higher levels of buyer inquiries recorded by chartered surveyors.
Six months of improvement
New buyer enquiries have now risen for the sixth consecutive month, according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. However, RICS reports that transactions remain at low levels.
There has been a slight increase in the number of sales recorded per surveyor - up to 10.6 per surveyor over the past three months, from 9.7 in the previous period. Surveyors are also growing more optimistic that prices and sales will rise.
Another positive sign is that there has been an increase in sales compared to stock. This could be a sign of likely price rises later in the year, says RICS.
'Market picking-up'
"There are tentative signs that the market is starting to pick up, but transactions remain at very low levels and we are unlikely to see significant improvement while money remains in short supply and the employment picture is uncertain", says RICS spokesman Jeremy Leaf.
Leaf admits that market conditions remain difficult. "House prices could stabilise in the coming months but prospective purchasers - and first-time buyers particularly - will continue to encounter challenges while banks maintain current loan to value ratios and make accessibility difficult even for those who have accumulated considerable equity in their existing properties," he says.
Prices still falling
The difficulties in making a clear assessment of the housing market at present were underlined by the release of the latest FTHPI analysis conducted by Acadametrics, which draws together the findings of six different indices. This shows a continued fall in average house prices, which were reported as down by 1.1% in April and 14.2% down over the year.
A more positive interpretation of current market conditions is presented by the latest Knight Frank Prime Central London Index, which reports house prices to be rising for the first time in over a year. According to this analysis, prices rose by 0.4% in April, with annual price falls flattening out to a drop of 22.7%.
The biggest price recoveries were seen in Chelsea, Kengsington and Mayfair. But prices continued to fall - by 2.2% - in the most expensive properties, worth over £10m.
While there are various signs of market recovery, the outlook remains mixed - especially with fears that the economy could take some time to rebound and with unemployment likely to increase substantially in coming months. "It might be an old chestnut, but it unfortunately remains true - don't read too much into one month's figures," says Liam Bailey, head of residential research at Knight Frank. But he does believe that "price falls are almost at an end for the central London market".
The news is at least getting better.
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There are tentative signs that the market is starting to pick up, but transactions remain at very low levels and we are unlikely to see significant improvement while money remains in short supply and the employment picture is uncertain
