With the Spring statement just released and Rightmove sharing their House Price Index, we thought now would be a good time to take a look at where the Spring market is heading.
Bold headlines from Rightmove point out that we are about to experience ‘The best ever spring sellers’ market’ as prices hit another new record and average asking prices reach £350,000 for the first time.
With a month on month increase in property prices registering 1.7% and supply still lagging behind demand by a factor of 2 to 1, it would seem the market is poised for a record-breaking Spring.
If you are thinking of selling, you are now twice as likely to find a buyer in the first week of marketing as you were in 2019, a stat we can verify in Derby, with the average time to sell dropping and many properties selling within 1 day, let alone 7. You can take a look at the full report here.
The biggest fly in the ointment of the market as we see things is the lack of suitable property for onwards purchases, with many people who are desperate to make a move backing off a little as they are concerned about finding a buyer before finding a property to move to. In this case, the advice is, don’t wait. Getting your home up and on the market means you will be in a better position to move on the right property when it becomes available and, according to the Rightmove stats, the supply of property coming to market is increasing, particular in the 4-bedroom detached sector, with new stock levels rising by 12% over this time last year.
The Spring statement has offered some rest bite from the cost of living increases that we are all experiencing, with a 5p reduction per litre on fuel duty, an increase in the threshold for National insurance payments to bring it in line with the personal income tax thresholds and removal of VAT for households installing solar panels, heat pumps or insulation. Whilst these are welcome breaks, they may not go far enough to take the sting out of increases in the Bank Of England Base Rate and the expected rise in inflation to a predicted 7.4% average this year.
Although on the face of it there was little in the Spring statement to directly affect the housing market, with the combination of living cost increases, increases in the cost of borrowing and the unknowable effect of the terrible events unfolding in the Ukraine and further across Eastern Europe, it really is very difficult to say where the market with head over the back end of 2022. However, most signs point to the demand for property continuing to outpace supply, meaning we could be seeing this sellers’ market remaining buoyant for at least the foreseeable future, with possible cooling of demand expected towards the end of the year.
Overall, the signs point to a healthy ‘Spring bounce’ and the key take away from this month so far is the extraordinary level of competition from buyers for the right property. As has always been the case for those of us who have been in the property Industry for long enough, the advice is not to try and play the market, but to make that move when it’s right for you, so if you are thinking of making a move this Spring, get in touch!
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