Change in property buyer sentiment noted

Posted: 26 Oct 2009 12:19:05 GMT

House price rises in some parts of London have been driven by a change in sentiment among those looking to buy property, it has been suggested.

Alex Thompson, director at the Notting Hill office of estate agent Winkworth, said that people looking to buy homes have been happy "to re-engage" with the market since the second quarter of 2009, as confidence has increased.

He added: "Also, [there is] the lack of stock, which has underpinned everything. There has been so little out there that you have got these people chasing very few properties."

Last month, estate agent Knight Frank reported that prime central London property values grew by 1.3 per cent in September - the sixth month in a row that prices had increased.

However, compared with September 2008, house prices were said to be down by 8.9 per cent.

Nationwide Building Society findings show that across the whole of the UK, the average cost of property last month was the same when compared with one year earlier.

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