Northern Ireland’s housing market continues to outperform the rest of the UK according to data from the latest Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Residential Market Survey which points to stronger price growth, greater sales momentum and healthier levels of buyer enquiries here than in all other regions.
Local respondents were almost unanimous that price momentum continued in March and that house prices were up over the first quarter of the year, in contrast to the UK as a whole where surveyors on balance are now point to falling prices over the three month period.
The number of newly agreed sales also remained on an upward trajectory, with a net balance of +34% of Northern Ireland respondents pointing to a higher number of sales over the past three months. And a net balance of 46% of NI respondents noted an increase in new buyer enquiries in March, which is the highest in the UK by some margin, but lower than the net balance of 61% in the February survey.
Looking ahead, whilst expectations for the Northern Ireland market remain strong regarding the next three months, they have moderated in the face of rising borrowing costs and wider geopolitical uncertainty, according to the survey.
A net balance of 23% of NI respondents are expecting an uplift in sales over the next three months, down from 33% last month. And a similar trend is evident with price expectations. Here, the balance of 48% is markedly lower than the 77% in the February report.
Samuel Dickey, RICS NI Residential Spokesperson, said: “It is clear that NI’s housing market retained its momentum in March, with solid price growth, a good number of sales and good demand. Respondents to the survey are also expecting prices and sales to rise over the next three months, despite rising borrow costs. Understandably, they are perhaps slightly more cautious than they were due to global events and the impact on inflation and what this will mean for interest rate decisions. However, the Northern Ireland market is in quite a different place from other parts of the UK with supply here significantly lower than demand. This should see price growth continue and sales continue to take place.”