September Market Comment

Welcome to the September 2023 property market comment.

The weather may still be telling us it’s the height of summer, but the schools have now gone back, the holidays are behind us and life for most of us is very much back to normal.  This is actually a good time for the property market, with the next focus on achieving a sale by Christmas a firm reality.

Although the nationwide tells us that average house prices are down over 5% on this time last year, some of this could be down to the fact that there is more activity in the flat market than the house market – you may remember that the price growth of detached houses was double that of flats since the beginning of the pandemic, so flats are relatively more affordable for those who may be feeling the pinch of higher interest rates.

Yes, mortgage approvals are down 20% on last year’s average, but it does look like we may be approaching the tail end of that price correction you might have heard about and it looks like we may be in for a softer landing than many were predicting. We have strong wage growth, lockdown savings, flexible and even creative mortgage products over longer terms, all pointing towards a bit more personal financial stability going forward.  

Nevertheless it is dawning on serious sellers they this may not be the market they were hoping for, although the important thing to recognise is that as 80% of these sellers are also buyers, who should really be concentrating on the difference between the buying and selling price rather than the media headlines.

So If it’s time for you to move on – let’s make it happen, sooner rather than later, because, pricing aside, time is the one thing you can’t get back, and we’d love to help you move.

©Copyright 2023 Richard Rawlings except as excluded under licence.