Have just been musing over property prices and thinking about what is to come. If you haven't already come across this website then it's quite useful:http://www1.landregistry.gov.uk/houseprices/housepriceindex/report/Lets you track prices and sales volumes for different areas since 1995. The question I'm pondering is that it is now early 2009, and as of Jan 2009 the average house price was 155-160k. So what will happen next?1. The average house price index will rise. Seems unlikely with the current trend and how the media is, in a slightly simplistic way, fully aboard the doom and gloom bandwagon.2. The index will fall slowly. Could do but I think sales volumes would have to increase to prop up the prices and with the current uncertainty it seems that wait and see is the prevaling opinion.3. The index will fall quickly. Scary. Prices are at mid 2006 ish prices now. If investors are no longer buying bricks and mortar because rental returns aren't worth it and appreciation isn't likely, then it's down to the lumpeninvestoriat to stop the downward momentum and they're all steadily being laid off!4. The index will fluctuate. There wont be a clear trend because prices will fall a lot one month, go up a bit the next, go up again a little bit (but not enough to balance the initial fall) but that will give enough hesitators incentive to stay in the market so there'll be a standoff leading to a very sharp fall at some time later.Any comments, thoughts, general abuse?
