Consumers should be wary of taking advantage of the current low property prices, according to an expert.
Taking the "mindset of an investor" could be dangerous in the current economic climate, it has been claimed.
While reports have suggested that mortgage approvals and home sales have been increasing in recent weeks, house prices have still continued to fall.
Simon Preston, chairman of iammoving.com, warned that many consumers may be tempted to take advantage of these low prices "because they think that it is going to be a good investment over a three to five-year timeframe". Mr Preston suggested this could turn out to be true, but said that the average person has a different way of thinking to an investor.
An investor will look at the low prices and lack of housing in the UK and reason that buying property will have a "reasonable rate of return", Mr Preston explained.
"But for someone where [the property] is their primary residence and probably the largest part of their own personal portfolio, it is pretty high-risk to take the investor's perspective," he added.
However, Mr Preston did add a positive note on the trends currently being seen in the housing market. "People are probably still nervous, but there are lots of indications to say we are through the worst of this," he said.
