LONDON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - A measure of British house prices
edged down in October but there were signs that buyers and
sellers were sitting on the sidelines at least until next
month's election, a survey published on Thursday showed.
In the latest sign of weakness in the housing market against
a backdrop of Brexit uncertainty, the Royal Institution of
Chartered Surveyors (RICS) said its house price index slipped to
-5 from -3 in September.
That was a touch below the median forecast of -4 in a
Reuters poll of economists.
New sales instructions fell for a fourth month but less
severely than in September when they tumbled at the fastest pace
since Britain voted to leave the EU in a referendum in 2016, and
there were signs they would remain weak.
New buyer enquiries and agreed sales remained negative too.
But near-term sales expectations improved and sales were
expected to be broadly stable over the next three months in most
of the country, RICS said.
"The latest survey feedback continues to suggest that both
buyer and seller activity remains in a holding pattern, hampered
by political and economic uncertainty," Simon Rubinsohn, RICS
chief economist, said.
"Given the upcoming general election next month, it appears
unlikely that these trends will pick-up to any meaningful extent
over the remainder of this year."
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has called an election for Dec.
12 in an attempt to break the impasse in parliament over his
plan for Brexit.
(Writing by William Schomberg)