Upmarket estate agent Savills hit by housing slump

Savills, the upmarket estate agent has warned us today that the housing squeeze is not only affecting the UK, it is also spreading to parts of Europe and Asia, this is a sure sign that the credit squeeze is certainly taking hold.

Savills has said that their UK business is suffering; they have said that trading conditions in many markets is now making it difficult for them to predict what the outcome will be next year.

This warning has had a dramatic result on Savills shares, they have now plunged 19.75p to 195.9p, that’s a drop of 9%.

Residential transactions in London are now down 45% on last year, prices are down 7.5% in the first part of this year alones. However luxury homes outside London are less affected.

The top end of the market with properties worth £5 million plus, have been immune to the downturn. Savills has said that they are now looking to cut costs, which they hope will be enough for them to cope with this current downturn.

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