House sales increase third month in row

Apr 16 2009 by Chris Robinson, The Journal

HOUSE sales across the North East increased "rapidly" last month, industry experts reported yesterday.

Figures released by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) show that sales increased for the third consecutive month in the region.

And new inquiries in the market increased for the fifth consecutive month.

It comes as new Government figures reveal a fall in house prices of 12.3% year-on-year in February, with the annual pace of decline at a new record.

The North East has the lowest average house price in the country, at £131,974, according to the Department of Communities and Local Government (CLG).

The average cost of a UK property dropped 2.7% between January and February, to £189,813.

But RICS reported 42% of surveyors in the North East experiencing positive prospects for the three months ahead, up from 14% in February.

An average of 10 transactions per month have been reported in the region with the national average now at 9.7.

Richard Sayer, RICS North East housing market spokesman and director at regional estate agency Rook Matthews Sayer, said: “The figures are an accurate and heart-warming reflection of the uplift we’ve been witnessing in the region in the past three months. Buyer interest takes time to translate into sales and thankfully we are now witnessing this in earnest and in a way that we haven’t for the past 18 months.

“People are buying and selling houses again and we are seeing a healthy flow of new and sensibly priced stock on the market across the region.

“Homebuyers are also waking up to the fact that mortgages are now at their cheapest rates for 50 years and lenders are opening up their criteria to make loans more widely available.”

A spokesman for the Department of Communities and Local Government said it was determined to build homeowner confidence.

He added: “We are working to unlock credit flows and taking action to support first time buyers aspiring to enter the market by increasing opportunities to buy a share of a home.

“We are also bringing forward funding to deliver more affordable homes sooner which will also support the house building industry to weather the current climate. We are constantly looking at what more we can do to ensure stability and fairness in the market.”

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