It may have felt like all our plans for 2020 were cancelled at times, but people have still been busy planning for their future. According to Rightmove’s recent House Price Index, home-moving has filled the holiday void this year.
There is usually a seasonal slowdown in housing market activity over the summer months, as buyers and sellers turn their attention to holidays. But this year, home movers have put more property on the market and have agreed more sales than in any month for over ten years.
What does this mean regionally?
This has resulted in a record high for new seller asking prices in Yorkshire and the Humber with a 1.4% monthly change and 5.9% annual change, in comparison to Greater London which has seen a monthly change of -2.0% and annual change of 2.0%.
The average house price in Yorkshire and the Humber was recorded at £206,818, with the average time to sell 61 days.
What does this mean nationally?
Rightmove reported that “the number of monthly sales agreed is the highest that we have ever measured since we started tracking this figure ten years ago, up by 38% on the prior year, and a massive 20% higher than the previous record set in March 2017”.
Interestingly, the increase in activity is not just a result of the stamp duty holiday, as sales agreed are up across all customer types. National figures show a rise of 29% in the first-time buyer sector, 38% in the second stepper sector and 59% for larger, top of the ladder homes.
Record levels of pent-up and new buyer demand mean that there is extra pressure on the lending and legal areas of the home moving process, which is expected to rise further in the run-up to the 31st March stamp duty holiday deadline.
