7 in 10 say house prices will keep rising despite the cost-of-living crisis

SOARING property prices and a shortage of homes for sale have people believing it will be a seller’s market in the UK for the next 12 months, research has revealed.

Seven in 10 expect house values to climb even higher nationally and twothirds expect to see increases in their areas.

Just 18 per cent consider a further rise in prices would be good for the country – but 41 per cent admit they will benefit from any rise.

The belief the increases will continue comes despite experts claiming the market has peaked due to the cost-of-living crisis.

Some 59 per cent consider the next 12 months will be a good time to sell a property while 35 per cent say it will be better to buy one. But in a sign of growing concern about the housing crisis, 72 per cent of people in England support the introduction of rent controls, the Ipso poll found.

And some 65 per cent are in favour of giving powers to local councils to increase council tax on second and empty homes.

Boris Johnson’s new extension of the Right to Buy social housing policy was supported by 56 per cent of the 2,100-plus adults surveyed.

Yet 36 per cent said the lack of affordable homes and high prices are the biggest housing problems facing Britain right now.

More than two thirds are not confident the Government and developers will build enough affordable new homes in the next few years.

Ben Marshall, research director at Ipsos, said: “It’s a sign of the pessimism surrounding housing in Britain that people expect things to get worse in terms of the two features of the housing crisis they consider most important – rising house prices and building enough affordable homes.

“The extension of Right to Buy receives majority support but so do rent controls and giving local government more powers to tackle second and empty homes.”

Around three in 10 say the lack of social housing is a key problem while 28 per cent say rents are too high and 58 per cent of tenants say rising house values are not good for them.

Ministers have previously ruled out introducing controls – whereby rents do not rise above inflation.

Eddie Hughes, housing and communities minister, has said the Government was “not committed to the idea of rent control as all it does is stop investment in properties – and that is the last thing we want to do”.