UK Housing: The Benefit of a Weaker Currency

While a weak currency isn't ideal in all situations, it seems that a weaker sterling is helping to reinflate the U.K. housing market. Ed over at Credit Writedowns provides details of the rebound:

The Nationwide, the UK’s largest building society, released data this morning showing that UK house prices rebounded in March from February’s dip. The average UK home now costs £164,519, up 9% from year ago levels. Much of the increase has been driven by supply-demand imbalances with a dearth of properties coming to market in the poor economic climate of 2009.

A weak sterling has caused the housing market to be awfully attractive to investors outside the U.K. An example can be seen below, comparing the change in the price index in both local currency (sterling), as well as the dollar.



Source: Nationwide / Yahoo Finance