The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) took a strong stand at the 5th Real Estate conference that took place on 24 September in Nicosia. The pre-eminent organisation of property professionals across the world was represented at the conference by the Chairman of RICS Cyprus Mr. Petros Stylianou MRICS, the RICS’ Senior Economist Mr Oliver Gilmartin MRICS, and executive board member Mr Pavlos Loizou MRICS.

The Chairman of RICS Cyprus made the inaugural speech of the co-organised conference, highlighting recent market trends and outlining the need for increased professionalism, rigid standards, and better coordination between the various real estate bodies.

Mr Stylianou also called for increased market transparency and announced that the RICS had commissioned the University of Reading (UK) to research the underlying methodology in creating a Cyprus property price index. The index will be launched in quarter 1, 2010 and will cover all sectors, residential and commercial, across all districts.

Mr Gilmartin said that historically low interest rates and a recovery in global growth have finally started to ease the pressure on global property markets. Some countries such as the UK are leading the property cycle with activity and prices starting to stabilise. A two tier market appears to be in operation in Cyprus, with the second homes market under greater pressure than the mainstream. An improved environment is likely in 2010 although a return to previous excesses is unlikely. Significantly, medium term risks are apparent in 2011 and 2012 from lower trend growth in the major world economies and higher long term interest rates. Furthermore, greater economic volatility could reduce appetite from cross border investors with currency trends likely to be a greater consideration in the coming years

The conference was concluded with a round table discussion on the future of the real estate market in Cyprus. Mr Loizou highlighted the lack of transparency in the Cypriot real estate market and emphasised the need for better coordination between finance houses and property practitioners. With regards to the current state of the property market Mr Loizou noted that the RICS’ main concern is the ratio of housing prices to the total income of locals; this has moved from 7 times in 1998 to 11 times in 2008. Housing prices have been increasing faster than income and have thus become less affordable.

With regards to the current transaction volume he noted that total sales are expected to be more than 50% lower than any of the years 2001-2008. RICS Cyprus expects the year to end with 7,900 transactions completed, circa 46% down from 2008. Whilst things are not positive in terms of transaction volume, the three month average is showing an upward trend probably indicating that the worse is behind us.

About RICS
RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) is the mark of property professionalism worldwide. It covers all aspects of property, construction and associated environmental issues. In a world where more and more people, governments, banks and commercial organisations demand greater certainty of professional standards and ethics, attaining RICS status is the recognised mark of property professionalism. Over 100.000 RICS members, who are Chartered Surveyors, operate out of 146 countries, supported by an extensive network of national and regional offices located in every continent around the world. RICS’ global headquarters is based in London. The European World Regional office is based in Brussels, supported by 19 national associations in Europe. RICS has a Royal Charter which requires the organisation to maintain and promote the usefulness of the profession for the public advantage. This is what sets RICS apart from trade bodies.

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