No sign of housing market pick-up

The past month has brought no evidence that the current housing market soft patch is coming to an end. Mortgage approvals are down compared to a year ago, while house price growth remains at low single digit rates. On the one hand, with the economic backdrop set to improve in 2018, activity is more likely to rise rather than fall over the next 12 months. But with house prices already so high and real wages still falling, an acceleration in house price inflation looks unlikely.