2
Jul
NAEA: Government must help property market
The government must continue to offer assistance to the housing
market in light of recent figures released by Nationwide, the
National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has said.
President of the body Chris Brown noted that it is "encouraging"
house prices dipped by 0.9 per cent in June, as the fall was bigger
the month beforehand.
He added that some of the NAEA's members have reported losses in
confidence as the credit crunch continues without abating.
"We have called for measures such as a stamp duty holiday for
first-time buyers and temporary tax relief on the mortgage interest
of people's primary residence," he remarked.
Mr Brown also suggested that further action from the government is
needed and this may give people "hope for the future".
However, he said, the market is "stabilising", which might lead to
a resurrection of confidence in some cases.
According to Nationwide's data, the average house price in the UK
now stands at £172,415.
