Good news for sellers as prices are on the up

NOW that we’re moving into spring, the UK property market is looking set for a buoyant year to come.

Home movers appear to be more active as we enter the new season, which is a cause for cautious optimism, although pricing homes realistically is still going to be essential for some time to come.

According to figures from Rightmove, the first two months of 2024 have seen typical new seller asking prices rise by £3,091, equivalent to 0.9 per cent.

That means average prices have gone up year-on-year by 0.1 per cent following the annual falls that have been experienced since summer 2023, taking the average asking price for a UK property to £363,839.

Yet it is important to keep in mind that pricesensitivity is still strong amongst prospective purchasers.

Moneyfactscompare.co.uk reports that, currently, it is taking 16 days longer for sellers to secure a buyer compared with this time in 2023.

On the upside, though, plenty of properties were listed on the market over the past few weeks.

In fact, the figure is up on last year’s numbers by seven per cent.

Stability is wavering in the mortgage marketplace, with mortgage products’ typical shelf-life having seen a dramatic fall from a high of 28 days at the beginning of last month – the highest number seen since this time last year – to just 15 days at the beginning of March – the lowest figure seen for six months.

Furthermore, as lenders are adjusting the deals that they are offering on a regular basis, the average interest rates for five-year and two-year fixed mortgages rose over the last month for the first time in six months, bringing the run of consecutive drops to an end.

The good news for borrowers is that fixed rates are still lower in April than they were at the beginning of the year and there is no shortage of good options on offer.

In fact, the number of mortgage deals now available is at the highest level seen since early 2008.

For borrowers looking for a high LTV deal, there are more products to choose from today than at any other time in the last four years.

According to latest figures from Zoopla’s Hometrack Report, while there are 20 per cent more properties available on the rental market nationwide than there were this time last year, the current supply remains below the average number before the pandemic.

Rental affordability also remains at its highest point for a decade, and it’s unlikely to improve any time soon without further expansion in the rental supply.

More than 50 per cent of all private rental properties are now costing tenants over £1,000 a month, which is close to double the number seen five years ago.

On the upside for prospective tenants, though, the recent drive to ‘Build To Rent’ is creating new rental markets in city centres.

More than 90,000 homes have been built under this initiative nationwide in the past few years, and more are in the pipeline.

Hopefully, this may ease some tension in the rental market and help to curtail rental inflation in the near future.

Metrics for sales, new instructions and buyer demand are all looking good, and buyers are enjoying a greater range of options, since more properties are being listed.

As long as sellers present their properties to their best advantage and price them realistically, they should be able to secure a purchaser for their home this spring.