Property valuations dipped further last month, according to Connells Survey and Valuation.
The housing market has now cooled following a pick-up in valuations activity in September. October saw the total number of valuations fall by 20 per cent compared to the previous month.
However, on an annual basis, housing market activity decreased by 10 per cent, an improvement from a slightly steeper fall of 12 per cent over the twelve months to September 2014.
John Bagshaw, corporate services director at Connells, says the dip signals stability in the market.
“The slowdown is broadly in line with seasonal expectations and is not an alarm bell. On average, we have seen a 16 per cent drop from September to October every year since 2010.
The introduction of stricter policies designed to restrain uncontrolled growth and protect against a return to the property bubble of 2008 have also tempered the housing market, he says, pointing to the recent loan-to-income caps introduced in October as one policy that seems to have had an impact.
The new regulation means lenders may issue no more than 15 per cent of their residential loans at greater than 4.5 times the borrower’s income.
Bagshaw says there may be a further seasonal lull as we approach the holiday season, while the policy uncertainty surrounding the general election in May is also likely to make buyers more cautious.
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