Buyers focus on ‘quality of living’
IT’S CERTAINLY been a busy year, with a record number of people deciding to get on to, or move up, the property ladder as a result of the huge changes to work and life that we’ve all experienced. The Government has of course been actively involved in supporting those looking to move but, as the stamp duty holiday draws to an end and we (fingers crossed) move closer towards business as usual, the question on everyone’s lips is what the next 12 months will hold for the property market.
One of the key pieces of reform to look out for is the upcoming Planning Bill, which was promised many months ago by the Government.
It was confirmed back in May that MPs should be debating the Planning Bill this year but, as I regularly point out, the devil is in the detail and it remains to be seen what changes this bill will bring.
Driving its introduction, however, is an undeniably archaic system that for many years now has been harming the UK property sector by preventing much-needed homes from being built, and is one of the main reasons why housing supply is in crisis.
So far, we have had some insight into what the Government is planning, with Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick releasing plans that reveal it will be prioritising both digitalisation and stronger controls on design.
He has laid out that they will be requiring councils to develop local design codes which will be used to determine what developers can put forward.
While some may see this as another hurdle for homebuilders, if it provides a clear set of criteria for developers then this will absolutely be welcomed. At the moment one of the major issues is a lack of clarity on design that allows planning decisions from councils to be almost entirely subjective. To support developers in meeting the high demand for new homes, a clearer and more efficient planning system would be transformative and would provide immeasurable long-term benefit for the whole market.
Much has also been made of whether the end of the stamp duty holiday will signal a drop in house prices but, while prices of homes have steadied in recent weeks, the number of those who are actively embarking on their search for a new home remains strong. Those starting out their search now are unlikely to benefit from the £6,500 that can be saved providing you complete by September 30. However, I do not believe that this will have as significant an effect as was originally thought.
The reason for this is that movers are being driven by a change in mentality as a nation — with an even greater importance now being placed on the home and environment we live in, day to day.
We have seen a clear cultural shift where the value of a house is becoming less important than the quality of living it has to offer. So long as people concentrate on the monthly cost of paying their mortgage (with all of the longterm low fixed-rate options available) how much it costs them to live somewhere has become more important than the value, which, let’s face it, they are unlikely to release unless they decide to emigrate or to downsize significantly.
For investors it is also heartwarming to see the rental market coming back strongly, with high numbers of new tenants returning as London opens up.
July has been our busiest month yet [at time of writing] for new tenancies, showing that buy-tolet investments continue to be the reliable financial decision that they always have been.
As demand continues to far outstrip supply, with the number of homes on the market it is absolutely a good time to sell.
We expect market positivity and strong house prices to continue at least until the end of the year, with both firsttime buyers and families moving up the ladder looking for that perfect property to provide a peaceful home office or more space for growing kids.
In the longer term, the only factor that could affect transactional volume is supply, as a result of the archaic planning system preventing developers from delivering new homes.
We’re already facing a challenge with dwindling housing stock in some areas, with plots that could provide multiple homes sitting empty, as planning departments delay and extend the approval process.
If the upcoming Planning Reform Bill delivers the change promised, and enables those who are trying to build with the support and clarity that are needed, then the long-term prospects for the property market are extremely bright.
Long-term prospects for property are extremely bright’