Housing market eases in first quarter

THE first quarter of this year saw price growth in the housing market tapering considerably while transaction growth bottomed out, Daniel Kavishe, market research manager at FNB Namibia said yesterday.

Growing at 4% on a quarterly basis, price growth seemed to have eased due to seasonal factors as most transactions recorded were those carried over from 2015, he said in a report. Volumes declined by 30% due to slower than usual activity recorded across the whole country. The median price across the country was recorded at N$800 000, while the average number of transactions during the first three months of the year was 188 transactions per month. At the end of March, prices in central Namibia had increased by 3,4%, while volumes declined by 13%.