Increases in real estate prices may indicate that risks to financial stability are building up. But other indicators, reflecting credit standards and the build-up of housing debt, need to be considered as well. These include the leverage of households, debt sustainability, amortisation requirements, and loan-to-value ratios. Traditional statistics often do not reflect these indicators of financial instabilities.
The G20 Data 2 4/8  BIS central bankers' speeches  Gaps Initiative addresses this.2 In its first phase, a Handbook on Residential Property Price Indices was published in 2013. With regard to residential property prices, the bulk of the conceptual work has been done, and the focus has shifted to compilation and dissemination.