According to Savills, which is one of the leading estate agencies in the country, there will be a 6.6 percent reduction in house prices across Britain during 2010. Although this forecast will come as a blow to many homeowners who have aimed to ride out the recession in hope of a quick market recovery, it is clear that the UK housing market remains depressed.

In fact, this forecast follows previous predictions of a forthcoming slump, as one of the main reasons behind this year’s 3.7% increase of house prices is that low interest rates have enabled homeowners to buy new properties whilst letting their old houses.

However, as rental prices continue to decrease, so too will the margins within which such a rental market can survive. Furthermore, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has long argued that house prices remain significantly over-valued and are due another major crash. Thus, homeowners ought to brace themselves for another difficult year in respect to house prices. In fact, the depressed housing market is not expected to recover fully for a number of years, with conservative estimates suggesting that a period of between 3 and 5 years ought to be anticipated.

Savills is, however, predicting a much improved market in 2011 onwards, where house prices are expected to increase by 2.7% followed by a 5.5% rise in 2012. Therefore, homeowners are advised to continue making improvements to their homes in order to increase its value when market conditions have sufficiently recovered to make selling up an affordable option. Homeowners whose houses are no longer big enough to accommodate their families may wish to consider a building extension, loft conversion or garage conversion in order to increase space for a new bedroom. Likewise, a home office can be moved into the garden for a relatively small cost.

Related posts:

1. House Prices Continue to Rise Despite Predictions House prices in the UK have risen for the seventh...
2. House Prices – Finally On The Up? No stranger to doom and gloom headlines, the recession has...
3. Still in a recession? House prices going up! News released yesterday from the Nationwide Building Society, reports a...
4. What is the Value of an Average Home? According to figures released last week by Nationwide, the average...
5. The Housing Market Slump: a Renter's Paradise? Although the UK economy is showing signs of recovery, the...