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Vendor instructions continue to shrink, say very un-merry surveyors

Latest RICS report on surveyor sentiment about the property market shows many continuing to experience lower number of instructions and enquiries.

Nigel Lewis

RICS vendor instructionsThe volume of vendor instructions dropped during November for the 22nd month in a row and half of all agents reported fewer instructions in November than October, the latest survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) reveals.

Its monthly UK Residential Market Survey of members also reveals that house prices and buyer demand continued to weaken in London, the South East and East Anglia during November, although the trend has yet to spread.

The property market is now clearly divided along geographic lines, too.

Many agents in the South believe house prices are unlikely to rise soon and more than half in London have seen them drop.

But surveyors everywhere else except the North East were more upbeat particularly in Wales, Northern Ireland and the North West.

RICS also reveals that the decline of new buyer enquiries for properties is beginning to stabilise. Five percent of those canvassed said demand was lower than the previous month, down from 19% during October.

Flat prices

Surveyors don’t expect the market to pick up anytime soon either, the report says.
Nationally prices will remain flat as gains in the north and Wales continue to be offset by losses in London and the South.

Simon Rubinsohn RICS image“It is perhaps not surprising that the headline indicators for both prices and activity are subdued as Christmas approaches,” says Simon Rubinsohn, Chief Economist at RICS  (pictured, left).

“But once again the feedback we are receiving from respondents points to quite marked differences in trends across the country.

“It is clear from the results than the mood music in London and the South East is very much flatter than elsewhere and interestingly, the forward looking indicators suggest this is likely to persist into the new year.”

And Richard Sexton, Business Development Director at surveying firm e.surv (pictured, right) says action is needed to get the market moving again.

“To help ensure a buoyant market, the industry and Government should be doing more to encourage movement within the market to free up housing stock,” he says.

“We should be looking to create a circle of life by encouraging second steppers to move up the ladder and incentivise last time buyers to downsize from large family properties, so that these properties can be freed up for others.”

Read the full report from RICS.

December 14, 2017

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