Consumer confidence defies the stats

With the latest figures from CREA showing that house prices increased again in August; a 2.1 per cent rise year over year; you might expect that consumer confidence in the housing market would also be high but it’s not.

With the latest figures from CREA showing that house prices increased again in August; a 2.1 per cent rise year over year; you might expect that consumer confidence in the housing market would also be high but it’s not. In fact the weekly barometer of confidence published by Bloomberg Nanos shows that expectation of continued price rises is flagging and is now at its lowest point since April. In July the survey recorded a record high with 47 per cent of respondents believing that there would be house price rises in the next six months; last week that figure was at 38 per cent. The majority, 48.1 per cent, think that prices will stay the same. Despite these figures, the overall level of confidence in the economy was higher, while confidence in job security and personal debt was down. Read the full story.