RICS: Housing prices outlook weakest since Brexit – Reuters

As reported by Reuters, British housing surveyors are increasingly downbeat about housing prices, with the RICS housing survey ticking into its worst reading since the initial Brexit referendum in 2016.

Key highlights(via Reuters)

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said its headline house price balance fell to a four-month low of -2 in September, below all forecasts in a Reuters poll. The outlook for prices in three and 12 months’ time was the lowest since June 2016.

“Uncertainty relating to Brexit negotiations is at the very top of the list followed by references to the confidential remarks made by the Bank of England Governor to the cabinet,” RICS Chief Economist Simon Rubinsohn said.

The headline figure masks big regional variations. Prices are falling in London, which saw the biggest rises before the Brexit vote. The city is vulnerable to Brexit worries among foreign investors and any barriers to financial services trade.

Sales were slow almost everywhere, however. New buyer enquiries were the weakest since March and houses were taking the longest to sell since RICS started asking its members about this regularly in February 2017.