Tuesday, Nov 20, 2007
Forecast for the housing market
Times Online: Property market: your questions answered
Experts are predicting that the property market next year will be stagnant — rather than suffering any significant falls. Owners will simply hold off selling, if they can’t secure a price they are happy with, and the reduced number of homes for sale should keep prices high.
Posted by peter @ 02:06 PM (464 views) Add Comment
6 Comments
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1. drewster said...
Owners will simply hold off selling? That shows a remarkable lack of understanding of how the market works. Try substituting in Northern Rock shares and see how that same sentence sounds: "Shareholders will simply hold off selling their Northern Rock shares if they can't secure a price they are happy with, and the reduced amount of shares for sale should keep prices high."
How about twisting it around: "Non-owners will simply hold off buying if they can't secure a price they are happy with, and the reduced number of buyers should keep prices down."
(apologies for posting the same comment on another story too, but it is relevant!)
2. Icarus said...
Right, Drewster. If owners don't sell when there are downward pressures on property prices this ought to mean that there has NEVER been a fall in property prices, Anywhere. Ever. Isaac Newton needs to think again.
3. dohousescrashinthewoods said...
If sellers won't sell and buyers won't buy, a market breaks down.
Only forced or necessary sales will go through (there are probably necessary purchases, but unlikely to be many forced purchases).
The result is that the few transactions that do go through define the market. They are pushed to either side of the "spread" and, if there are more sales than purchases, that defines a falling average.
4. the northerner living in oz said...
They may have a point stagnation for the first few months
as the true state of the U.K economy becomes more and visable.
The decline will start slowly in Mar and just accelerate for the rest of the year
5. New Poster said...
Although they talk about a level market and prices holding steady next year, we may find it's the Esate Agents that start to push prices down next year when they realise they won't be able to earn a living without getting their clients to drop prices.
6. Lulah said...
do these 'so called' experts ever bother to factor in those who must sell? Divorce, death, job change...these are just the extremes. Honestly the very same things were being said here in San Diego CA 12 months ago, now we have asking prices down about 15%, and almost no one buying. The price per sq ft, is really down. Bubbles do not flatline or stay at permanently high plateaus, it is all about affordability!