It is a Cliff

It is a Cliff

A fortnight before Christmas and there are more cliff-hangers than reindeers on Santa’s sledge, let us go through the seasonal pre-Xmas list.

Countrywide PLC – a tug of love between Connells, a proven model of profitability and other factions that ‘have a plan’ but have not had their mettle tested. In truth needing the backing of 75% of the shareholders, this sideshow is likely to run well into 2021.

Brexit … yes, this is also by definition a cliff-hanger, as a likely fudge in injury time is the typical outcome the British public expect, will Boris disappoint?

Portal watch, will Boomin dominate in 2021, does Rightmove feel the hot breathe of ZPG who has increased their market share of new branches, during the pandemic season, or will out of the ranks of the property portal/platform insurgents – a new saviour for the industry gain traction?

Will ‘The Property Franchise Group’ take ownership of Hunters, and if so, who will it most benefit?

As Covid-19 hit Airbnb took a beating, now it is has announced a 30BN valuation ahead of its imminent IPO, do the money men have it right or could lack of freedom to move around the globe/country affect its forward trading model?

The SDLT holiday, will it end in March, or will the band play on and Rishi will extend the good times being enjoyed by those who actually have some inventory to sell?

New CEO Tim Balcon, what shape will he fashion Propertymark into, and will the government become more of a regulating hand than ever before?

How will the government, courts and the PRS sector deal with the backlog of tenancy disputes?

The recent unfortunate redundancies at RICS, is this a sign of the times with digital replacing some of the human element or is it a more fundamental re-structuring?

What master plan has the new CEO Jason Tebb of On the Market got up his sleeve?

But perhaps the biggest cliff hanger is when or if the housing market will run out of steam, judging by the sold boards in my local village and the lack of inventory coming to market – there seems little sign of this at present.

Andrew Stanton

CEO & Founder Proptech-PR. Proptech Real Estate Influencer, Executive Editor of Estate Agent Networking. Leading PR consultancy in Proptech & Real Estate.

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

Section 21s continue to rise ahead of looming ban

The latest research industry insight from LegalforLandlords Section 21 “no-fault” evictions continued to rise in 2025, increasing by 1.7% following a sharp 20.4% surge the previous year. This sustained growth highlights landlords’ continued reliance on Section 21 notices, raising important questions about how possession will be regained once they are outlawed under the Renters’ Rights Act,…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

Rightmove house price data showing a 0.8% month on month increase

Commenting on the latest Rightmove house price data showing a 0.8% month on month increase, Daniel Austin, CEO and co-founder at ASK Partners, said: “Today’s rise in UK house prices points to underlying resilience, but momentum remains constrained by affordability pressures and a ‘higher for longer’ interest rate environment. While recent rate cuts signal easing…
Read More
Breaking News

Canary Wharf tops the London Marathon route

The latest insight from property management specialist Rushbrook & Rathbone has found that E14 is the strongest postcode along the London Marathon route for landlords looking to invest in the capital’s rental market, delivering an estimated average yield of 6.6%. Rushbrook & Rathbone analysed current asking house prices and rents across postcode districts spanning the London…
Read More
Breaking News

46% surge in remortgaging activity in Q1

Stonebridge Mortgage Market Index    Overall mortgage activity rose 24.6% in Q1 while applications for home purchase softened Stonebridge today relaunches its Mortgage Market Briefing as a quarterly Mortgage Market Index   The volume of remortgage applications surged 46% in Q1 prompting overall mortgage activity to jump by a quarter, Stonebridge can reveal. The mortgage…
Read More
Rightmove logo
Breaking News

Housing market remains steady despite higher mortgage rates

The housing market remains steady so far in April despite higher mortgage rates due to global uncertainty. Average new seller asking prices rise by 0.8% (+£2,929) in April to £373,971. This is consistent with February and March, but is below the long-term average for April. The average two‑year fixed rate has risen to 5.42%, from…
Read More
Breaking News

Housing market springs back into life

The latest research by Yopa reveals that as Spring begins, 6.3% more homes are on England’s housing market today compared to the start of the year, with some counties seeing increases of more than 16%, showcasing growing seller confidence in a market that is on the up. Yopa has analysed residential listings data from March…
Read More