Property shares nosedive

Share values across the property sector have dropped in recent days amid growing signs that the residential property market is slowing, especially in previously buoyant London and the South East. Countrywide, the country’s largest estate agent, saw its shares drop by 2.9 per cent late last week, while Rightmove and Zoopla’s share prices fell by 3.7 per cent and 2.5 per cent respectively. House builders also failed to escape unscathed from a raft of recent property reports and house price indices that suggest that it is fast becoming a buyer’s market as the market cools. Developers listed on the FTSE 100, such as Taylor Wimpey, Persimmon and Barratt, all saw their share prices depreciate by more than 4 per cent at the end of last week, with further falls anticipated by some market analysts. Stockbroker Jefferies, for instance, last week downgraded the entire residential property sector, projecting that London and the South East may see property price falls in the months ahead. A research note from Anthony Codling, Jefferies’ property analyst, which was made public last week, suggested “share price weakness in the UK residential sector” in the first quarter, on the back of “negative newsflow on UK mortgage approvals,…

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