Report by Business Editor, John Moss (Broadcast on Manx Radio, March 6th):

If you are a home owner, the figures provided for the Council of Ministers in the quarterly government statistics review might give you comfort. It seems your house is going up in value, by quite a sum.

The worrying aspect is that if you wish to 'upsize', you will probably find any house you are aiming for is also going up quite considerably, and if you want to enter the market, the problem grows.

According to government figures, the average house price in the Isle of Man in 2004 was under ?220,000. It rose steeply to ?233,000 a year later and then slowed the next year to ?237,000. In the last year, it has shot up again to ?265,000. But what is the reason?

The report to the Council of Ministers terms it 'something of a resurgence', but those trying to get on the house ladder might term it something else.

The 11.7% increase from 2006 to 2007 is more than it rose in the previous two years. The review goes on to speculate that, during the current year: 'a negative pressure on house prices may be expected as a consequence of tightening credit conditions, but local economic conditions will provide a strong counter'.

So our booming economy will probably keep the prices rising, which will make life harder for folk coming to work on the Island and looking to buy.

Estate agents will prosper of course.

(Picture: John Moss in Manx Radio's news studio).