A leading estate agent is predicting a two per cent rise in house prices and a ten per cent leap in the number of house sales in the next three months.

Russell Jervis, managing director of the company that owns the Haart chain, bases his forecast on experience following the last two general elections.

"During the run up to the 1997 election the percentage increase in property value dipped from 2.4 per cent in the last quarter of 1996 to 1.3 per cent in the first quarter of 1997. However, after the election poll in May, house prices recovered and increased by 1.6 per cent.

"The trend followed the same course in the run up to the election on June 7, 2001," says the agent. "In the last quarter of 2000, the property price increase was one per cent and remained stable at 1.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2001 and then jumped up to an increase of 4.1 per cent in the second quarter during and post the general election," says Jervis.

The same improvement was seen in sales.

In the last quarter of 1996 there were 359,000 transactions, dipping to 325,000 in the first quarter of 1997.

The number of sales then increased to 351,000 in the three months during and immediately after the poll.

In 2001, transactions before and after the election rose from 327,000 to 347,000.

Mr Jervis commented: "We are certain that the housing market will be a lot more buoyant from May onwards, whatever the result of the election."