New house price fears as enquiries fall

Enquiries by new buyers in June fell for only the second time since the housing market started recovering at the end of 2008, leading to fears that house prices will fall, according to the RICS.

The  monthly poll of surveyors found that 5% more surveyors reported a fall in new enquiries than a rise, down from a positive 8% in May. In addition the positive balance of agents reporting a rise in house prices halved from 22% in May to 10% in June.

The news comes as surveyors continue to report more and more people putting homes on to the market, partly in response to the abolition of HIPs following the election. 27% more surveyors reported a rise than a fall in new instructions.

The balance of surveyors now expect a fall in prices in the next  few months, compared with an expectation of rises last month.

RICS spokesperson, Jeremy Leaf said the abolition of HIPS was helping to bring more homes to the market. He said: “This is likely to be reflected in higher sales numbers over the coming months. However, with supply of property now beginning to outstrip demand there is a risk of some modest slippage in prices during the second half of the year.”