Great news for sellers as the market continues to grow
As most of our fellow agents will no doubt report – it is heartening to see that the housing market appears to be relatively immune to the COVID crisis, as people reconsider where they want to live. We currently have a large database of people looking to purchase, with many properties flying off the shelves as quickly as they are listed!
I have spent some time recently researching our local statistics, which back up our local market experience, and which suggest that now is still a great time to get moving!
It appears that the UK property market continues to go from strength to strength as demand for homes recently hit the highest levels since HMRC records began in 2005!
Property portals and our own website are seeing more visitors than ever before and the latest Office for National Statistics’ data shows average house prices in England have risen 10.2% in the last year (to the end of March 2021), the highest annual growth rate since August 2007. In our area, the Local Authorities give more focussed price rise data, being 9.0% for Telford & Wrekin, 7.7% for Shropshire and a massive 15.7% in Stafford Borough.
But, the important questions are; what does this mean for buyers, sellers, and potential investors and will this trend continue throughout the remainder of 2021? Whilst we believe that as the current demand for property continues to increase, prices will maintain their healthy level, it may be that once the Stamp Duty Land Tax holiday is over, prices will stabilise as purchasers take stock of the additional tax monies they will have to pay on top of the purchase price. It’s hard to predict and it will be interesting to see how this pans out over the next few months!
The clock is ticking on the stamp duty holiday
The Stamp Duty Land Tax holiday, originally set to end on 31st March, was recently extended but it is anticipated that there will not be another extension.
The first deadline to be aware of is 30th June (which may have passed by the time you read this) when the tax band reduces from £500,000 to £250,000. The second deadline is 1st October when stamp duty rates will be set to the original threshold of £125,000.
In other words, this is not going to last forever – so if you’re thinking of moving to a new home soon, now is the time to act to take advantage of this saving!
There’s never been a better time to sell
The current conditions in the marketplace mean that there has never been a better time to sell. As previously mentioned, we have so many people on our mailing list, looking for properties of all sizes and prices. If you’re thinking about moving home in the near future, then don’t delay. Get a valuation today and find out how much your home could sell for.
First-time buyers make the most of 95% mortgages
It has been noted that there’s been a massive surge in the number of people looking to buy their first property – the ONS reports a 10.3% rise in the West Midlands over the past year. This has been helped by the re-introduction of many new mortgage products including 95% mortgages.
All buyers may now find the market offers more generous criteria – with many lenders returning to their pre-pandemic policies, so whether you are a first time buyer or not, it is perhaps worth contacting a specialist mortgage and protection advisor, who will be able to give you some idea of your borrowing capacity.
If you would like a free, no obligation, pre-sales or pre-rental valuation, please don’t hesitate to contact us on 01952 811003 where we will be pleased to provide you with professional advice.
Elizabeth (Sales)
