POTENTIAL buyers are returning to the property market, research showed today.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said buyer inquiries rose for the third month in a row during January, with 16 per cent more surveyors reporting an increase in interest than those who saw a fall.

The number of sales agreed during the three months to the end of January also stabilised, with the average chartered survey estate agent arranging 9.9 sales, down only fractionally from an average of 10 during the previous three month period - although the figure was still the lowest level on record.

Surveyors expect further price falls in future, and the RICS said the main factor depressing prices was still the large stock of unsold homes on estate agents' books, relative to the pool of able buyers.

The number of surveyors reporting price falls improved in the north west, south east, and the north during January.

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