PUTTING YOUR HOME ON THE MARKET? W
CHAN Khangura, from Whitegates, regularly talks with local Huddersfield residents about the state of the current property market. And the most recent concern of theirs? That the younger generation will never be able to afford to buy a home, while landlords make money on the inability of others to buy property.
“I know that a third of 25 to 30-year-olds still live at home. It’s no wonder people are speaking out against buy to let landlords, as they’re the greedy people who are cashing in on a social woe,” explained Khangura. “In fact, many people believe the high increases in Huddersfield’s, and the rest of the UK’s, house prices are the very reason owning a home is outside the grasp of these younger would-be property owners.”
However, the numbers tell a different story, he claims. In 1990, when property data was first published, the average age of a first-time buyer was 33 – today it’s 31.
While the average buying age seems to be getting younger, less young people are doing so. In the early 90s, 26.7 per cent of first-time buyers were under 25, while in the last five years just 14.9 per cent were. Similarly, four in 10 first-time buyers were aged 25 to 34 during that time, and this has now risen to six in 10.
Khangura points out that although there are indications that housing is unaffordable, the ratio between house prices and earnings has almost doubled for first-time buyers in the past 30 years. In 1983, the average Huddersfield home cost a first-time buyer (or buyers in the case of joint mortgages) the equivalent of 2.6 times their total annual earnings, while today that has escalated to 3.7 times their income. It’s also worth noting that in 2007, the figure rose to 4.6 times their income for Huddersfield first-time buyers.
Again, those figures don’t tell the whole story. Back in 1983, the mortgage payments as percentage of mean take-home pay for a Huddersfield first-time buyer was 27.6 per cent. In 1989, that had risen to 57.6 per cent.
It might seem confusing that today it sits at 23 per cent – seemingly almost as affordable as it was in 1983 – if it wasn’t for all those other rising costs the young are facing. HETHER you’re a seasoned seller or you’re planning your ‘forever’ move, the decision to up sticks and put your home on the market can be a daunting one. From dealing with estate agents and presenting your home for viewings, to securing a mortgage on a new home, these are the top things you need to remember: home is overpriced, it won’t attract interest.
But there are several other tricks to pricing a property so that it stands out. Pricing it at the top of a Rightmove price bracket – for example £425,000 – may mean it gets seen by more buyers than if it it’s priced at £430,000 (the next bracket is £450,000, so people will need to scroll through a lot more properties before they reach yours). Make your home attractive to buyers. De-clutter, ensure it’s clean and tidy, get your carpets cleaned, and consider a lick of paint if areas of your home are looking tired. It’s easy to stop ‘seeing’ un-necessary clutter, so get a friend over to give you their honest opinion. Consider the open-house marketing method to create interest and a sense of urgency among prospective buyers. This can be a highly effective way to achieve best sale price.