Britain's housing market is an unexploded economic bomb

Britain's housing market is an unexploded economic bomb - MoneyWeek

Britain's housing market is an unexploded economic bomb - MoneyWeek

By all means read this thoroughly depressing article but bear in mind that for our part we have had the best 3 month run in terms of sales, new instructions and contract exchanges since 2007 when we agree that the 'top' of the market was reached. As a broad brush generalisation estate agents are not interested in rising or falling house prices - they earn their living from actual sales so it is the volume (number) of transactions that is the real issue. Our view is that volumes are up! Home owners can only put off a move up or down the market for so long before other pressures come to bear and they simply have to do it.

If you still feel like you need to be reassured that the only way is down then take out a subscription for a regular copy of the Daily Mail!

Comments

It's July 2022!

How many bloggers find that it's only something they do when they have found some time to fill, for whatever reason? I admit that there are companies and individuals who will write something for me on a regular basis, but my feeling is that it needs to be authentic and my 'voice'. When I get back to my keyboard to do this it makes me worry that the market may be changing and we'll need to start adapting again to new circumstances, new problems and constraints. The dreaded COVID has not gone away, just adapted itself. My wife Janet managed to pick it up from her 93 year old father after spending several hours with him coughing and sneezing on the way back from a trip to Wales. Her first time contracting it since the pandemic began and it's been 4 days now since she tested positive. My results are negative. I told my colleagues that's because I'm a 64 year old Teflon coated estate agent! But then, who knows when a variant particularly targeted at the property

Interest rates and inflation First of all, let’s get some basics together. Reproduced below is The Times ‘explainer’ with my numbering of reasons and highlighting of the players involved: The Bank of England has warned that it could peak at 13% this year when the energy price cap goes up again. But what is pushing up prices? Energy bills are by far one of the biggest contributors. (1) Gas prices rocketed as economies around the world reopened after the coronavirus lockdowns. (2) The war in Ukraine has exacerbated the problem. In April, average gas and electricity prices jumped by 53.5% and 95.5% respectively compared with a year ago. (3) Average energy bills are now forecast to hit £3,850 by January 2023 after Russia cut gas supplies further. Fuel remains at some of the highest levels seen on record, although pump prices are falling, slowly . Average petrol prices were 182.69p a litre in July . In early June you could expect to pay 186.59p. In May you could expect to pay 160.31p

House builders discuss 95% mortgages with lenders

So the house builders and the lenders have had a meeting to discuss how they can create 95% mortgages. Basically a good thing, as you would imagine most estate agents would say. But what proportion of the housing Market is represented by new homes sales to first time buyers? Also any first time buyer who purchases a new home is then a cost to the second hand Market of who knows how many sales! If I think back 30 years my wife and I as first time buyers were providing a deposit of 10%. To do this we sold her car, saved up by not going out as much and generally committed ourselves to the task of buying our first home together. Ah, you might say, but house prices were so much cheaper then. True but my salary was just under £2,000 per annum with the prospect of perhaps another £1,000 in commission from selling at lease 6 houses per month personally. The first 4 didn't count towards commission but were to cover my costs to my employer! I personally don't think 95% mortgages are

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