House prices fall as coronavirus freezes in-person viewings
THE average house price fell by 0.6% in April as market activity was held almost at a complete standstill, according to an index from building society Halifax.
It was the biggest month-on-month fall in two years – since March 2018.
Across the UK, the average house price stood at £238,511 in April.
Despite prices having fallen month-onmonth by 0.6% in April, and by 0.3% in March, the average UK house price in April was still 2.7% higher than a year earlier.
Social distancing measures, due to the coronavirus pandemic, mean physical viewings, valuations and house moves have had to be put on hold for now. But house hunters can still do “virtual” viewings online and put in offers on properties if they want.
Russell Galley, managing director, Halifax, says: “The impact of measures taken to curtail the spread of coronavirus started to filter through to the housing market in April, with average prices falling by 0.6% compared to March, and the annual growth rate easing to 2.7%.
“With market activity currently almost at a complete standstill, the limited number of transactions available means that calculating average house prices has inevitably become more challenging. This will lead to a great deal of volatility until more data becomes available.”
Andrew Montlake, managing director at mortgage broker Coreco, says there are many buyers and sellers who remain keen to progress their move.
“We have received a lot more inquiries over the past couple of weeks, with many people now looking to move to more rural areas once this is all over,” he says.
“Increasingly, people want to take advantage of the fact that coming out of this pandemic there will be more homeworking flexibility and better technology. This means they will be required to commute into main cities less and less.
“We are on the verge of a fundamental shift in our working and social lives and the availability of housing and lending will be key to this.”
Ben Johnston, director of property app Houso, says: “People will still want to move once the crisis passes but the way they interact to find those homes and negotiate on them will be different.”
Jeremy Leaf, a north London estate agent and a former residential chairman at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics), said: “What we are seeing on the ground are previously agreed sales proceeding to exchange and completion without price renegotiation and a buildup of browsing interest as buyers and sellers ready themselves for easing of restrictions.
“Buyers and sellers are also taking advantage of interest rates remaining low for the foreseeable future.
“Overall, we are being told that transactions are stalled and will be revisited as soon as it is safe to do so.”