New study reveals why housing booms and busts are built into the system

Search news articlesSearch07 April 2026New study reveals why housing booms and busts are built into the systemSome policies make it easy – and tempting – for people to gamble on rising house pricesA new study shows that the ups and downs in house prices are far more dramatic than most people think – and that government policies play a big role in making them happen. Researchers analysed housing markets in 23 OECD countries from 1990 to 2019. They found that during boom-and-bust periods, house prices changed by almost 6 per cent a year, compared to a long-term trend of just 2.6 per cent. According to one of the authors, these cycles matter more than the trend.These cycles are not random shocks.

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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at King's College London.