Drop in new house prices sharper than statistics suggest, economist tells HS

THE PRICE DEVELOPMENT of new residential units has been weaker than official statistics suggest due to gaps in the statistical monitoring of prices, Juhana Brotherus, the chief economist at the Federation of Finnish Enterprises, stated to Helsingin Sanomat on Wednesday. Brotherus believes the prices of new dwellings in housing companies dropped much more sharply in the first quarter of the year than the two per cent suggested by official statistics.