One of the most relied-upon sources for information on Sweden’s home-price development has been barred from releasing its data publicly, just as the country is in the midst of its worst housing rout in decades.
(Bloomberg) — One of the most relied-upon sources for information on Sweden’s home-price development has been barred from releasing its data publicly, just as the country is in the midst of its worst housing rout in decades.
Valueguard Index Sweden AB, which compiles the HOX housing price index, says it can no longer make its data publicly available, including to the media, as a result of a decision from the Swedish competition authority. The ruling marks the latest twist in a legal battle between Valueguard and Svensk Maklarstatistik AB, a brokers’ organization that collects transaction data.
The HOX index is a valuable tool for the central bank, the financial regulator and commercial lenders for monitoring the development in the biggest Nordic country’s housing market, rocked by a slump that has seen 16% of home values wiped out since a year ago.
The index is based on data from Maklarstatistik, and the tussle between the companies started in 2020 when the brokers’ organization sought to stop Valueguard from making the HOX index publicly available.
In the Jan. 30 decision, the competition authority said that Valueguard should be able to compete over customers even if it isn’t able to openly publish the index data on its website. Banks and authorities will still be able to purchase rights to use the index and refer to it publicly “if the publication of housing data is not the sole purpose of the publication, and it is part of a wider context.”
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