The April 2026 RICS Residential Market Survey results continue to reflect a challenging global macroeconomic backdrop, with the associated rise in interest rate expectations weighing on buyer demand. Moreover, near-term sentiment indicators suggest that these subdued conditions are set to persist over the coming months, while the outlook for the year ahead has softened noticeably. From an aggregate perspective, the new buyer enquiries series registered a net balance of -34% in April. While this is marginally less downbeat than the -40% reading recorded last month, it still points to weak market momentum, with almost ... (full story)

Sentiment in Britain's housing market deteriorated sharply in April, with the RICS house price balance sliding to its weakest level in nearly two and a half years as the economic fallout from the Iran war and the prospect of higher interest rates bear down on buyers. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors reported a net balance of -34 for April, down from a downwardly revised -25 in March and the lowest reading since November 2023. The result came in well below the Reuters consensus forecast of -26, suggesting the market is weakening faster than analysts had anticipated. While measures of new buyer enquiries ... (full story)