apartments, had speeded up to an exceptionally fast pace, while approvals to build houses were going along steadily. These developments suggested to us that a disproportionate amount of the upward pressure on residential property prices was coming from investors.
One response to this would have been to sit back and do and say nothing, on the grounds that the market would sort out the problem. We accept that it no doubt would, but it could take a lot of time, the excesses could get worse in the meantime, and the eventual resolution of the issue could cause a lot of financial distress.