By Steve Cook – Partner Clarke Gammon
The Local Property Market Update May 2024
The local property market sees increased demand and relief for buyers and homeowners as the big high-street lenders cut mortgage interest rates.
HSBC, TSB and Barclays have all announced the reduction of over 100 deals following increases in recent weeks and brokers are confident that the cuts will prompt other lenders to follow suit.
Mortgage lenders increased costs last month and early this month after forecasts of an interest rate cut by the Bank of England were pushed back because of stubborn inflation and a rise in swap rates, a market indicator used by banks and building societies to price their fixed loans.
Although when the Bank of England held borrowing costs at 5.25 per cent last week, a 16-year high, it signalled a rate cut could come as soon as next month, particularly given the recent news of a fall in inflation.
UK inflation has fallen to 2.3%, which is just shy of the Bank of England’s target of 2%. This marks its lowest level in almost three years.
Mortgage markets have therefore, adjusted their forecasts, signalling a potential end to the recent trend of lenders increasing their rates and resulting in the announced cuts.
Asking Prices at Record High
Rightmove’s recently published House Price Index confirms that asking prices hit a record high in May as homeowners, buoyed by the news of lower mortgage interest rates and stronger buyer demand, have become more optimistic.
The latest house price index shows that the average price of property coming to the market reached a new record of £375,131, rising by 0.8% at the start of May. Asking prices are 0.6% higher than this time last year, although there is of course no guarantee that homes will sell at these prices.
The data from Rightmove confirms that the price growth continues to be led by the largest-homes, top-of-the-ladder sector, with prices in this sector up by an average of 1.3% compared with last year and suggests that the market is being driven by pent-up demand.
The report further confirms that the number of sales being agreed during the first four months of the year is 17% higher than last year, outstripping the 12% increase in the number of new sellers coming to market, highlighting the strength of buyer demand.
The real issue within the property market is not finding a property or indeed a buyer, but transaction times, this is confirmed in the Rightmove report. The average time it takes for under-offer homes to reach completion is a painful 154 days, that’s almost 6 months to complete.
See our most ‘Recently Sold Properties’.
Recently Listed homes
We have seen an increase in the number of new properties coming to the market in May, here are some of our most recently listed homes for sale –
House for Sale in Haslemere – Guide Price £1,650,000
House for Sale in Godalming – Guide Price £1,250,000
House for Sale in Liphook – Guide Price £975,000
House for Sale in Liphook – £750,000
Apartment for Sale in Liphook – Guide Price £350,000
To see the very latest homes coming to the market, click ‘New to market homes’, this lists all of the very latest homes as they come to the market.
Considering a Spring move?
We have strong demand for properties in and around the towns and villages covered by our offices in Guildford, Haslemere and Liphook with many motivated buyers looking for a new home.
If you are considering a move please feel free to contact any of our offices, either for an informal chat about the market and how we might help you with this or to book a market appraisal.
Why not try our instant online valuation tool?
Steve Cook
Partner Clarke Gammon
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