Rise in North's house sales 'to continue'

House sales in the North have increased during the last three months and are expected to rise further, according to a market survey.

Despite this, prices are expected to remain static or fall because of economic uncertainty, public spending cuts and the possibility of rising interest rates, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors study said.

Keith Mitchell, senior partner at Belfast estate agents Templeton Robinson, said sellers needed to be realistic about prices.

“Prices went up by 50% and came down by 50% and it has taken a while for the market to accept that,” he said.

He added a lot of old houses had been on sale but had not reduced their prices or done so slowly.

New builds were being sold at more realistic levels and in some cases there were even bidding wars.

“People are obviously now a bit more cautious. A lot of the attention has been around headline points which can exaggerate the realities in the market,” Mr Mitchell said.

According to the RICS survey, in April most said the number of sales increased during the last three months and was expected to continue rising in the three months ahead.

RICS Northern Ireland housing spokesman Tom McClelland said: “It is clear that the housing market in Northern Ireland remains in a transitional phase.

“Whilst prices are continuing to fall in some sectors and areas, other areas and property types seem to be more stable and to be experiencing higher demand.

“Overall there will continue to be headwinds during the remainder of the year with economic uncertainty, public spending cuts and the likelihood of rising interest rates later in the year for instance.

“That said, housing affordability has improved dramatically and where houses are priced correctly there is evidence that they will sell.”