House prices are falling again for the first time since July last year according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Reports said that although more homes are being put up for sale, inquiries from new buyers were down for the second month in a row. Suggested causes for this are that potential buyers are finding it difficult to get mortgages as well as being afraid of unemployment. It’s also thought that this trend is likely to continue for the second half of the year.

The inability of potential purchasers to obtain mortgages highlights the lingering effects of the credit crunch as banks are still unwilling to lend. This is little comfort to tax payers who this week saw the banks which they bailed out last year, turnover massive profits. The added threat of unemployment shows that national faith in the economy is still wavering as positive economic indications are few and far between. This is one of the reasons that people are willing to sell as they seek to downsize so as to leave themselves more financially secure should the unexpected occcur. This is leaving a glut of houses at the higher end of the market, which is only going to be rectified should owners and estate agents alike come to more realistic valuations of the properties they’re trying to sell.

If your struggling with debt and feel that selling your home is the only way you can stay afloat, help is at hand. Leave your details with us and one of our dedicated debt management team will contact you, and discuss the options that will help you to keep your property and set you on the road to ‘debt freedom’.