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Today's Headlines:

House prices fall or rise (take your pick)
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House prices went up slightly – by 0.4% – in July, the Land Registry has reported. It

Knight Frank stay quiet after conman is jailed
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A tenant who faked his identity when renting through Knight Frank has been jailed for three

Rich overseas buyers keep prime London market aloft
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Chinese buyers are expected to replace Russian investors as major players in the prime central London

Moving occasion: today's the day!
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The most popular moving date is today, September 1, the Post Office has revealed. The two next

Prospective first-time buyers sink to new low
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The proportion of buyers expecting to buy for the first time in the next 12 months

Housing market 'edging towards double dip' claim
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Net lending plummeted in July to the second lowest monthly figure since records began in 1993,

Henry Pryor Blog
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Welcome to a new monthly blog by Henry Pryor, estate agent turned entrepreneur, inventor and expert

Rightmove profits climb 39% as more agents sign up
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A rise in the number of agents and an overall willingness to pay more to Rightmove

Portal creates new 'check out your competition' stats
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Property portal Home has created some new statistic pages on its site which we reckon will

Six in ten mortgages are now for house purchase
2 comments
The proportion of mortgages being taken out for purchases, as opposed to remortgages, is at its

News Story

Stock levels dry to a trickle as Nationwide reports prices back up

Friday 30th October 2009

Average house prices are back to what they were this time a year ago, the Nationwide reported this morning. But the news has already worried some agents.

David Smith, senior partner at Carter Jonas, said: "The stand-out symptom of the current property market is that stock levels are, in many cases, half of what they were in May.

"There is no sign on the horizon of more natural stock levels. As any buyer will know, there is very little choice out there at present.

"The ongoing rise in prices has been caused exclusively by the shortage of stock and growing demand, and the absence of new housing.

"Rising unemployment and, at some point, higher interest rates, could see a further stabilisation, or even reverse, in prices."

Meanwhile, mortgage lending is continuing to tick up. It rose again in September, according to the Bank of England.

The number of loan approvals for house purchase went up by 3,200 between August and SEptember, to 56,215.

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Posted By Gregster on Monday 2nd November 2009 10:30:59

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The artificial price growth we have seen and the hugely misguided positive press we are seeing will contribute to a very tough market next year.
As an agent we have low stock levels and good buyer levels - but if our stock levels were to go back to a normal level would it really be that busy? Would buyers be as desperate as they are right now because they cant find anything? Unlikely and I expect a huge influx of instructions early next year because the media seem to think the boom is back - thus the sheep will follow.
Logically speaking and looking at the facts next year looks like this.
Normal stock levels + limited lending + Stamp duty and VAT increases + Elections + Increasing unemployment = price slump.

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Posted By PeeBee on Friday 30th October 2009 18:27:15

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Mr Menorca. Stamp Duty will not stagnate the market. You're not telling me that a prospective buyer, who sees the perfect house TODAY, for £180k, will not buy it as it is over the SD threshold, are you? Thought not. Otherwise, ONLY properties under the threshold would sell. The market will continue. Deals will be done - whether some creative accountancy is involved or not. If you (by you, I mean ANYBODY...) have a problem with this, you shouldn't be selling homes.

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Posted By PeeBee on Friday 30th October 2009 17:59:00

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So - one Agent halves their available stock (they 'sold' an extra one last month...) and all of a sudden we have a supply crisis! Speak to ANY AGENT outside of the M25 (and probably the great majority of those within) and they will laugh at that. Well, they would IF it was funny...
There is nothing wrong with talking up the market, people - I have been doing it for 30 years and will continue to do so for another 20 - but do it in a sensible manner or risk a)egg on face or b)creating the next boom/bust cycle, which we all know has got us exactly nowhere. Steady away always wins in the end. Learn from the tortoise - or the tale of two bulls. Young bull to old bull - "Lets run over to the next field and service a couple of cows" Old bull to young bull - "Let's walk over and service them ALL!"

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Posted By Mr Menorca on Friday 30th October 2009 11:07:08

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weve got January to look foward too "not" £125k stamp duty, 17.5% vat and a general election! a horrible recipie for the 2010 market!

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Posted By bemused on Friday 30th October 2009 10:44:08

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House prices back up? No sign of that here. These conflicting reports - House prices going up, house prices will fall further in 2010.... Just adds to the mayhem! We have had several offers on our table recently but what the buyers are prepared to pay and what vendors are prepared to accept are such poles apart that we haven't even come close to negotiating a sale. Both parties are listening to the voice that is pertinent to their circumstances!

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Posted By GS on Friday 30th October 2009 10:19:09

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There is no natural market out there and it appears, very little consumer confidence. Prices will now only go one way.

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Posted By mm on Friday 30th October 2009 09:59:14

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All the cash is out of banks and into buy to lets this year. The govt. has still failed to get banks lending to first time buyers so where are these sales going to come from at the bottom of the chain?

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Posted By wtf on Friday 30th October 2009 09:56:34

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Lack of Stock, prices going up, recession ending,,where are these buyers then? Had busy sept, but just been counting tumbleweed all october.

Its either going to go mad in January or we are in the sh*t again.

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Editorial Contact Details - Rosalind Renshaw | rosalind.renshaw@estateagenttoday.co.uk | 01252 843 566.