The lack of housing availability in the UK has been widely regarded as taking on crisis proportions, but not everyone is weeping. The lack of supply has resulted in higher property prices, which translates to good news for portfolio property insurance policyholders.
Nigel Ellis, a director at Prickett & Ellis, noted that the current low supply figures of housing in the country has created an impression of higher demand. This is what led to higher home values and therefore higher prices.
Confirming this trend, an article on the website for independent insurance specialists Stride cited a report by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Reporting on estate agent indications for March and April, RICS found that 17 per cent of agents reported a rise in house prices in April, compared with 9 per cent of agents doing the same for March.
Another important factor is the fact that the UK has a self-contained economy, as opposed to Europe, where the economy is based on the euro. Mr Ellis was of the opinion that this contributed greatly to the benefits for the housing market in the country and, by association, for portfolio property insurance policyholders. He said: ?Property is a bit of a hedge against inflation ? it is an asset that is related to inflation and tends to go up with inflation.?
It is an encouraging sign that the economy in the country is not only showing signs of recovery, but also that a generally negative factor such as the housing shortage could have a positive effect.
