The first couple of weeks of the school summer holidays always creates a slight lull in the property market and, as I write this at the end of July, the holiday season has just started. My diary is quiet, but is that a fair reflection of the market if looked at in the wider context?
The majority of current press and property commentators’ reports would, at first, appear to indicate that the market is very slow. A recent Rightmove article had the slightly terrifying headline proclaiming that ‘house prices see biggest July drop in over 20 years’.
Further scrutiny, however, reveals that their statistics show a mere 1.2% drop in average asking prices across the country.
In theory this means, to take a random house value, that a home that was worth £350,000 in June would be worth only £345,800 in July. Is this a disaster? Probably not as sellers are, more often than not, buying in the same market anyway, and the reduction in the theoretical value is hardly likely to be a huge problem in reality.
In any case, monthly figures can always distort the wider picture, and an annual outlook is a much fairer reflection of the true position.
Rightmove’s article continues, saying that, year on year, asking prices are actually up, even if it is only by 0.1%. Couple this with their findings that average earnings are up by over 5%, and you have the basis for a solid and stable market.
A fact underlined by their declaration that the number of sales agreed on properties is actually 5% higher than this time last year, with the number of buyers registering with estate agents being up 6% in the same period.
Another recent headline I read in the trade press proclaimed that ‘Savills downgrades UK house price forecast amid economic uncertainty’. Another frightening read but, again, another case of ‘bad news sells’.
Exploration of the article revealed that Savills forecast, whilst being downgraded, still predicts a rise in prices of 1% this year, with a growth of 24.5% over the next five years. I may be wrong, but I still think that this is good news for homeowners, not bad…
And to contradict the majority, GetAgent. co.uk has just reported that the UK property market is ‘at its strongest’ since 2022 and HMRC figures have seen a surge of 13% in property transactions in June. Who to believe? Your call, not mine, I only speak as I find!
There was a recent Panorama program on BBC1 highlighting dubious tactics being employed by one of the largest chains of high street estate agents, mainly based around buyers being given preferential treatment if they were using the company’s in-house mortgage provider. Further dubious actions by a well-known online agency were also exposed.
This will be of no surprise to anyone in the industry as we all know how certain agents work, but we welcome the increased public scrutiny. I have long been an advocate of greater regulation in our industry to weed out rogue agents.
A recent study, commissioned by a firm of mortgage brokers and carried out by TLF Research, indicates that 96% of respondents believe that that stricter regulations are needed for estate agents. That figure speaks for itself.
At Berriman Eaton, we have built our reputation on integrity, fairness and transparency. We do not have an in-house mortgage provider and never play favourites with buyers. If you are looking for straightforward, honest advice, whether you are buying or selling, please give is a call.
