House sales in the South West at highest levels since 2008.

House sales in the South West are at the highest level since 2008 and are expected to continue rising.

The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has claimed that the increase is a sign that economic recovery is beginning to spread into the South West from London and the South East.

According to research by RICS 86% of Chartered surveyors are expecting to see rise in house sales over the next three months, the highest level since the survey began in 1978.

Roger Wilkinson of Estate agents Wilkinson-Grant confirmed the news. He said; “Its very definitely the case. We’ve had our best August, September, October period since 2006.

“Sales volumes are on the up and we have every reason to believe that sales figures will exceed a
million next year.

“while pre-recession figures may be still be a little way off growth areas like Exeter will continue to improve.”

42% of chartered surveyors in the South West reporting a rise rather than fall in house prices in the last month.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), however, have shown that the house price increase has dropped away from its peak last month.

The ONS say that although house prices are still rising they are rising at a slower rate than they had been previously.

They have attributed the faster rise reported last month to a much larger fall in housing prices in September 2012 seeing the figures level off after the drop.

Currently there is an imbalance between supply and demand which is expected to push up prices as more people are looking to but than sell their homes.

Roger Punch, RICS Residential Spokesperson for the South West, said:  “Some sellers appear to be waiting for the New Year before embarking on selling, presumably with the expectation of gaining higher prices, which in turn is currently adding to the shortage in supply.

“The various initiatives are continuing to encourage people into the market and the government needs to support the delivery of low cost housing as supply remains an issue. This increase in people looking to buy, rather than rent is now also beginning to be reflected in the South West rental market.”

One of themain reasons for the increase in house sales is the Government’s help to buy scheme which has made it easier for buyers to enter the housing market by covering a portion of the house cost on homes worth up to £600,000.

In a speech yesterday the Prime Minister, David Cameron Said: “Four weeks in and it’s clear that Help to Buy is already delivering. In just one month, over 2,000 people have been accepted for a Help to Buy mortgage.

“Or put another way, 75 families every single day have been put on the path to owning their dream home.

“But the best thing about Help to Buy isn’t the statistics - it’s who is really benefiting.

“Most Help to Buy applicants are first-time buyers, young and have a roughly average household income. This is all about helping hardworking people get on the first rung of the property ladder - and helping them get on in life.”

However the increase in house buyers has seen a decreased demand in renting leading to an increase in rental costs meaning that those who cannot afford to buy even with help to buy will be paying even more on home rental.

46% of chartered surveyors are expecting to see rental prices continue to increase over the coming months.