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World Cup causes housing market volatility

Monday, 3 July 2006 12:00 AM

The World Cup, the weather and the stock market have caused an unusual amount of volatility in the housing market this year.

Even the timing of Easter added to the ups and downs in the market during the first half of 2006, which overall has seen transactions rise by 12 per cent on last year, according to Your Move.

The effect of the World Cup is evident in the 11 per cent fall in transactions in June compared with May.

On June 25th, when England played Ecuador, the number of viewings was down by 38 per cent on the average for a Sunday in the previous month.

Although transactions were higher in May than in June, the amount of rain in the month means the housing market was less buoyant than usual.

Meanwhile, stock market jitters have affected consumer confidence and the timing of Easter resulted in fewer viewing days than normal in April.

"The market has been undoubtedly strong this year, but has experienced volatility month on month due to a number of external factors including the weather, stock market downturns and the World Cup," said David Newnes, managing director of Your Move estate agent.

However, there is optimism that viewing activity will increase after the World Cup, following a 24 per cent increase in new buyer registrations in June.

The south has performed better than the north during the first half of the year, with gross sales rising the most in East Anglia, 29.6 per cent, and the south-west, 23.4 per cent.

In Scotland, sales slid by 14.8 per cent, while in the north they fell by 2.9 per cent.

"The southern regions have been consistently performing very well, with strong levels of buyer activity and transactions," said Mr Newnes.

"However, this has resulted in a shortage in supply which is likely to result in less growth and transactions over the coming months."

He also had a dig at the Conservative party's campaign against home information packs (HIPs), insisting that it had "not helped the market in June as it is undermining confidence in the future health of the housing market."

He added: "After an initial transitional phase there is no doubt that the health of the UK housing market will be better as a result of the introduction of HIPs."

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