Finance
What’s Actually Happening with the UK Housing Market?
The UK housing market has been closely watched over the last couple of years. The mini budget is often cited as the catalyst for a healthy housing market turning sour. Its release had all markets on edge. While it correlates to a housing market decline, the damage wasn’t permanent. In early 2024, there were already nods to a recovery being achieved this year.
Now, it seems that a recovery has been completed. Well, that’s according to some sources. Other sources say that the housing market is still down. Others say it’s holding steady.
Basically, there’s a lot of noise right now. This tends to be a good sign for the health of the market, but with all these headlines, it can be tough to decipher exactly what’s happening.
State of the UK housing market
Towards the end of May, a very promising headline hit. It was reported by TheGuardian.com that the average house price in the UK hit a record high of £375,000. The surge in average price was explained by pent-up demand despite high mortgage rates. Over the first four months of the year, 2024 outdid 2023. In this window, 17 per cent more sales went through. Plus, May tends to be one of the strongest months for the housing market.
Further headlines, like those from Bloomberg.com, show a continued slow recovery for UK housing. Compared to May of last year, house prices in May 2024 were up 1.7 per cent. The piece is also quick to show that the average asking price may be over £372,000, but the average actual price sits around £270,000. So, it very much depends on what figures you see and your interpretation of the market.
Still, you consult different surveys, and you find different results. The ONS, for example, sees a positive 1.8 per cent change compared to last year. Others with more of a short-term overview see as much as a 0.2 per cent dip. It seems like there isn’t a rush for housing like there was a couple of years ago. Equally, the market isn’t sinking. It might just be looking fairly steady, which, in theory, is good for home buyers and sellers.
Selling in the spring to maximise the opportunity
Regardless of the overall health of the market, the spring months and early summer months are always the best time to sell. More people are out looking at houses. They want to move when it’s warm. Plus, they want to get the move done before the summer holidays. It’s been made even easier with the free cash offer and free online estate agent routes of Sold.co.uk. Anyone who wants to test the market can do so on a 30-day market or just take cash.
The speed offered by such a platform will be increasingly sought after. Many reports suggest that the current climate is the ideal setting for a steady housing market. This is greatly down to a decline in rates. On top of this, there’s a short turnover to the next election. Arriving on 4 July, it means that there’s less time for uncertainty, and the next government will be in place before the post-summer housing market interest.
UK housing is holding steady, making for a decent time to enter the market.
Manuela Willbold
Latest posts by Manuela Willbold (see all)
- 11 Effective Water Conservation Strategies in Commercial Kitchens - June 27, 2024
- What’s Actually Happening with the UK Housing Market? - June 19, 2024
- Demystifying DeFi: Understanding Ethereum’s Decentralized Finance Movement - May 15, 2024
