House prices fall as buyers lose interest

Property prices fell again last month as interest from buyers plunged for the sixth month in a row, research indicated today.

New buyer inquiries slumped again in November and dropped at a faster rate than in October, according to the latest report from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

It showed 44% more chartered surveyors reported prices falling rather than rising in November, while the reading for transactions per surveyor slumped to its lowest level since June 2009 at 14.8 last month.

But the overall poll on prices marked a slight improvement on October's survey and RICS said 43% of all respondents recorded broadly stable prices over the past three months.

A lack of buyers in the market is continuing to weigh on property prices, with mortgage finance remaining a stumbling block for many, particularly first time buyers.

RICS also said the surge in properties coming on to the market was now fading as would-be sellers decide to hold off until the new year.

RICS spokesman Ian Perry said: "Despite some better economic data, fears over how future spending cuts will impact on the jobs market are clearly still weighing heavily on potential purchasers' minds, with many deciding to 'wait and see' until the new year.

"Meanwhile, the lack of mortgage finance continues to deter first time buyers."

Regionally, the West Midlands and Northern Ireland registered the most negative readings for house prices, with 67% more surveyors reporting falls than rises in both areas.

The South West was the only region to report a positive net balance for newly agreed sales.

Surveyors expect house prices over the next three months to remain negative, with a net balance of minus 41% predicting prices to fall.

The RICS survey is the longest running monthly survey of house prices in the UK, having first started collecting data in January 1978.