Is the housing market about to flop?

There have been lots of mutterings in the media about how the housing market is going to be affected by the cost of living crisis and most of them paint a rather bleak picture. However, the media does not dictate the state of the housing market, homebuyers and sellers do and currently we at Lanarkshire Law are still experiencing high levels of demand for every single property that we list. 

Despite the rising cost of living, demand for properties in the month of May was more than double what it was in the same period prior to the pandemic. 

When the pandemic began and the country was sent into lockdown there were bleak prophecies made then too about how the housing market would be affected but instead of house prices plummeting they instead soared. Lockdowns had an effect on people's priorities and made them reassess their lifestyle with many deciding a house move was their next best step.

Since then house prices have continued to rise. Indeed according to Rightmove's June Price Index in June the property market had a fifth record breaking price increase this year. 

There was a 13% increase in the number of sellers in June this year compared to June 2021 which combined with the cost of living crisis may slow down the rapid increase in property prices. However, Rightmove has revised its annual growth forecast upwards from the 5% it predicted at the beginning of the year to 7% demonstrating that the market certainly isn't about to flop anytime soon. 

The increase in the number of sellers will be a relief to buyers who have been struggling to find a suitable property in this fast paced market. However, they should not be lulled into thinking that this means that competition for properties will be reduced. Tim Bannister, Rightmove's Director of Property Science wrote "We're hearing from agents that though they might have had slightly fewer enquirers for each property in recent months, they're still seeing significant interest from multiple buyers and are achieving successful sales".

Therefore if you are looking to buy a property it is still very important that you put yourself in as attractive a position as possible in order to increase the likelihood that a seller will select your offer. Ensuring that you have already accepted an offer on your own property and getting pre-approved for a mortgage are becoming necessities in order for your offer to be taken seriously in the current market. 

The rush to move created by the pandemic has caused a large backlog for conveyancers and the period of time that it is taking to move from having your offer accepted to reaching completion day is currently 150 days. This is being blamed on the fact that there are 44% more properties that are currently sold subject to contract, with buyers awaiting completion, than there were during the same period in 2019.

This means that if you would like to be in your new home in time for Christmas you need to be putting your property on the market now.

Deciding when to sell your home is a very personal decision. If you have been considering moving in Lanarkshire and are not sure if now is the right time please do give us a call on 01698 441327 and we will be delighted to have an honest conversation with you to help you decide what is best for you and your family.