23
Aug
Probe ordered into 'confusing' house price surveys
The Government is to launch an investigation into the usefulness
of its own house price indices – the Land Registry and CLG
surveys. The Office of National Statistics will also look at other
house price surveys and report by the end of the year. The probe
comes after a rash of absurdly differing reports and a disturbing
gulf between asking prices and even the most generously reported
selling prices. CLG only introduced its own survey after expressing
concern about the accuracy of other surveys.
Richard Copus, NAEA housing spokesman for the south-west region
of England said that people were becoming totally confused as to
what the housing market was doing:
"Over the last 8 months, commentators have been coming up with some
very erratic and downright misleading statistics. On one occasion,
the Nationwide said that prices had increased 10% in Plymouth in a
year, gone down 4% in a quarter in South Devon and increased by a
similar amount over a similar period in North Devon. This prompted
an investigative report by the Western Morning News at my request.
The result of the report was that the Nationwide would not disclose
how they compiled their figures!
There is no doubt in my mind that many of the organisations that
now rush to the newspapers to make their statements simply want a
bit free advertising and are not particularly concerned about the
accuracy of the information they are giving. The only accurate
criteria is land agency figures, but they are 4 to 5 months out of
date and therefore not very helpful with regard to current trends,
and estate agents figures which relate to current transactions but
must be taken on trust. The Royal institution of Chartered
Surveyors has only 7% of its members practicing as estate agents,
and most of those are at the high end of the market, and the recent
damning report which has caused so much damage in the residential
market is distorted as a result.
"If you want really know what the housing market is doing in
your area, contact your local NAEA agent who will give you
information based on recent local sales."