Richard Sexton, business development director for e.surv commented: “For every survey suggesting a crash is imminent, there is now another one suggesting that the market is once more on the rise. This range of opinions probably points to what most people already know - that the market is in something of the doldrums at the moment, neither storming ahead nor about to fall into an abyss of spiralling prices.”
e.surv have consistently predicted a soft landing for the market which has been increasingly borne out by figures from many sources. Sexton said: “It makes little sense to describe a single UK property market, it exists only as a short-hand method of describing a multitude of components. Our clients expect us to report on each individual property and often our valuers cover an area of 3 square miles or less - it is at this level of resolution that one must consider a market to make meaningful comments.”
Sexton goes on to assert that activity levels are as important as absolute changes in property values. “Whilst the year to date has been reasonable for e.surv, we believe that the second half of 2005 will be more vibrant than the first - particularly in areas such as Northern Ireland and South Wales.”
