The Netherlands two biggest mortgage advisory groups are reporting signs that the housing market may be picking up, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Monday.

The paper says the high-street chains Hypotheker and Hypotheekshop have noted the first rise in the number of clients asking for information about buying a house for some time.

‘There is a slight move in the right direction,’ the Hypotheekshop’s director Ron Bavelaar told the FD.

Figures from the national estate agents’ organisation NVM show just 17,500 homes changed hands in the first three months of last year, half the 2008 total. However, the NVM has also reported that the market may have reached a low point as the fall in house prices slows.