The outlook for the Northern Ireland housing market has improved considerably, with sales and prices expected to rise firmly in 2024, surveyors believe.
There was a pick-up in agreed sales in November and a rise in both new listings and buyer enquiries, with prices are rising more firmly, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) said.
But an ongoing challenge continues to be housing supply, because while more properties are coming on to the market, it is insufficient to meet the strong demand, according to property professionals.
Across the UK, feedback in the monthly Rics barometer is mixed regarding new buyer inquiries and sales.
But bucking the broader trend entirely, respondents have cited a clear upward move in house prices across Northern Ireland in recent months.
Samuel Dickey, residential property spokesman for Rics in Northern Ireland, says: “The residential property market picture continues to brighten here, with more potential buyers and sales going through than had been seen earlier in the year.
“The limited supply is keeping prices stable, and anecdotally we’re seeing good quality housing being priced reasonably. It remains encouraging to see that surveyors in NI are still more optimistic than UK counterparts despite economic and political uncertainty.
Rics chief economist Simon Rubinsohn said: “The latest Rics residential market survey provides further evidence that sentiment is a little less negative than previously was the case with, critically, the new buyer inquiries indicator finally beginning to stabilise.
“This is being aided by increased confidence that the interest rate cycle has peaked, which is reflected in somewhat more competitive mortgage products coming to the market.
“However, with the cost of money likely to remain elevated for some time to come and the economic outlook still downbeat, it is not surprising that the overall tone to the anecdotal remarks from survey respondents is still quite cautious.”
