Officials from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors have predicted that there will be an increase in property prices over the coming three months, bringing fresh hope to the millions of people that have been affected by falling property prices since the onset of the global credit crunch.

RICS recently released a report predicting the increase in property prices, although its predictions fly in the face of predictions made by some other groups.

RICS has predicted that in the next three months the decreases seen in the property market will start to tail off, and house prices will start to increase. The reports from RICS also indicated that just over 18 percent of surveyors reported house price falls for the month of June, and this compared to over 75 percent for the month of January, indicating that there are been a dramatic turnaround in the market.

The news was, however, mixed, and one official from the group stated: ‘Although the market is showing signs of improvement, it is unlikely that there will be a sustained upturn while mortgage lenders remain risk adverse. A lack of stock on the market is providing a platform for modest price increases. While supply remains tight, the market may continue to show tentative signs of firming but instructions are starting to increase in some regions and this could dampen any meaningful recovery as long as economic conditions remain quite so uncertain.’

One economist stated: ‘We suspect that house prices will be volatile around a modestly weakening trend over the coming months, and it is very possible that they could yet fall by a further 10% from current levels. Much will clearly depend on whether or not the economy can sustain its recent overall improvement, how much further unemployment rises, how quickly and to what extent credit conditions ease, and how many properties come on to the market over the coming months.’

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