BREAKING NEWS – top 5 stories 19/05/2021
WILL INDIAN VARIANT COOL HOUSING MARKET IN COMING MONTHS?
It has been disclosed that the government is making contingency plans should the Indian Variant of Covid-19 leads to another lockdown, be it a national one or a more localised approach. Clearly it is a wait and see approach at present, but mixed messages are now coming from Whitehall, all will become clear by the 21st of June.
BANK OF ENGLAND – WILL INTEREST RATES RISE IN 2022
Just a few months ago the BoE committee was speculating whether a negative interest rate is on the cards, presently the BoE rate is at a record 0.1%. Now with inflation rising, there is talk of the base rate increasing by the tail end of 2022.
Of course against the backdrop of Covid-19, and the economy gingerly opening up only this week with other possible bumps on the way, it is not clear what the Governor of the BoE and his wise council will do as they check the analytics on a monthly basis.
25% MORE ACCOUNT MANAGERS FOR RIGHTMOVE
Though it has a monopoly stake of agents, Rightmove has announced it is going to add a quarter more account managers to deal with their estate agents client base. This is either a charm offensive, or a way to nurture agents, some of whom saw 10% rises in their baseline fees to Rightmove in the last twelve months.
AS THE COUNTRY OPENS UP POST 17TH MAY – HOW SHOULD AGENTS RESPOND?
New guidance has been given to estate agents by various trade organisations, to help them through the maze of what to do now the general public are more at large.
A gently, gently approach, with safety at the top of the menu is now being prescribed, social distancing and the need for face wear will continue to prevail
MULTIPLE OFFERS AND LACK OF STOCK – BIG THEMES OF Q1 OF 2021 HOUSING MARKET
With the current buying frenzy in the property market and lack stock, it is not uncommon for sellers to receive multiple offers on their property and often for above asking price. The Members of The Guild of Property Professionals were asked about their local markets and what trends they have seen develop during the first quarter of this year.
According to Gareth Jones, Director of Harvey Holland operating in West Oxfordshire, it is pretty much a bun fight on all properties over £1million, with the highest price he has seen so far around 27% over asking. Jones says that most popular properties in his region now are large four- or five-bedroom houses offering entertainment areas and homes offices.
“Because people are working from home and or local hubs, such as Soho Farmhouse, there is a requirement for land with an external office. Many buyers are also looking for home entertainment such as pools, tennis courts and pizza bars,” he adds.
“Most buyers are from London moving out to work from home and commute a few days a week. There is also a strong local market for high-end houses as they are selling smaller houses locally. Currently our biggest challenge is stock, we literally cannot get enough to supply the demand.”
Colin Darbyshire from John Bray Estate Agents in Hastings says that the high demand for property and low levels of stock is pushing sales prices up in his region.
“In some cases, we have received 12 offers on a property with the highest price around 20% above asking price. While there are marginally more houses coming on to the market, they are selling fast so net stock is lower than average. The most popular homes in our region are mid-range three- or four-bedroom properties priced between £300,000 and £450,000. Buyers are looking for homes with an additional room, attic conversions, summer houses and space to expand,” says Darbyshire.
Director at Andrew Coulson Estate Agents, Ailsa Mather echoes the fact that high demand and shortage of stock is resulting in multiple offers on properties in the Tyne Valley in Northumberland.
“The property market is very active across the board, even the very rural areas selling quickly. We need more stock across all price bands and have seen offers 25% over asking price. A trend developing is that more clients seem to be moving from the South – in late 60% of stock was sold to local people, while the remaining 40% of stock from people outside the area as more people are able to work from home and don’t need to be in the city every day,” says Mather.
She adds that the biggest challenge in their market is from other agents over valuing and undercutting on fees. “We’ve overcome this by using the tools provided by the Guild – evidence of our success rate and also our commitment, passion and professionalism.”
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