New Home Owners And Snagging Forum

Home Owners => House Prices and the housing market => Topic started by: Admin on April 25, 2012, 10:35:08 am

Title: What are house prices really doing?
Post by: Admin on April 25, 2012, 10:35:08 am

With so many reports from different organisations each month which one reflects the true direction of prices for the housing market?
Every report has a drawback of one sort or other.
In general the greater the lag the more accurate the report is, even if it may not be current.

Rightmove: - Publishes price movements and average house prices based on asking prices.
What vendors hope to sell for - not what they are sold for.
Whilst this does give the very latest up to date sentiment, the price movement isn't particularly accurate or useful.

The RICS Report - Based on their data from surveyor's valuation of properties for mortgage purposes.

Nationwide and Halifax - These reports rarely agree. In March, Halifax reported a 2.2% rise whereas Nationwide reported a 1% fall in house prices. 
Both are based on the lender's own approved mortgages and both therefore do not include cash sales.

Land Registry data -  When a house is sold, the final price paid is recorded and the title deeds are transferred to the new owner.
Therefore the Land Registry report is the most accurate and reliable as it is based on all transactions. However, it also suffers the greatest time lag.

Title: House prices have fallen more than you think
Post by: Philofacts on May 10, 2012, 07:17:57 am

Well they are moving more than you realise!
According to the Halifax, house prices have fallen 18% from the August 2007 peak.
The average house price falling from £199,600 in 2007 to around £163,800 in April 2012.

Whilst this is far from good news, the real fall in property prices is being masked by the decline in value of the pound as it is far weaker now than it was in 2007.
If the average house is priced in Euros it has fallen 31%,  in US dollars the fall is 34%. In Japanese Yen, the fall in prices is a massive 54%.

The British people are systematically being robbed by government fiscal policy designed to evaporate the national debt through high inflation,
quantitative easing (QE)  and the devaluation of our currency.

Title: Re: What are house prices really doing?
Post by: Sadie20 on May 14, 2012, 09:08:02 am

The average price of a UK home is currently £163,800.
In the 1950's the average price was just £1,891. 
This shows what inflation can do.