ASB's quarterly housing confidence survey showed an improvement in April from January with more respondents saying now was a good time to buy and fewer respondents saying house prices were likely to fall. (Updated with further ASB comment on market turning the corner) The survey found the net percentage of respondents who thought now was a good time to buy increased to 46% from 38% in January, while the percentage who thought house prices would fall was 45%, down from 51% in January. The percentage who thought interest rates would fall declined to 30% from 49% in the previous survey. "The sharp spike in long-term fixed mortgage rates in late March no doubt swayed respondents' views," ASB said. "The early months of 2009 have seen positive views on purchasing translate into action: sales turnover lifted sharply through to April. It is likely the housing market is turning the corner," ASB said. "However, a robust recovery is another matter. The main impetus to prices is coming from lower mortgage rates. Many fundamentals for the housing market remain weak, in particular prices remain high relative to both incomes and rents despite recent price falls."
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