With house prices expected to hit record highs this year after the Chancellor announced an extension of the current stamp duty holiday, is now a good time to sell or buy?
The stamp duty holiday could save anyone buying a property below the £500K mark up to £15,000 in costs.
However, some experts warn this will help push home ownership even further out of the reach of many wannabe first-time buyers.
Simon Wilkinson, a Board Director of Propertymark, says: “We have not yet seen the huge surge in supply (for sale stock) that is to come. Come Q4 this year the market could look very different as repossessions come through – due to redundancies and business failures where there is a charge on the home. As HMRC process a massive backlog of probates, whilst divorce/separation sales rise. These distressed sellers will need to take any good offer or risk losing their home altogether. It’s a cycle.”
We reached out to a few estates and letting agency owners, and here is what they have to say:
“Demand has ignited again, the stamp duty extension together with the Govt guaranteed 95% lending by the major lenders will help buyers to buy now!! London & the south-east has remained buoyant in 2021 & we fully expect the sales market to be busy & prices to increase .. with interest rates remaining at all-time lows, 5% deposits & the Govt 300billion Covid support there is massive spending availability in the economy.
Now Brexit is executed whether you like it or not, Britain will push to ensure it is a success. We follow a brilliant behavioural economist Roger Martin Fagg who post-budget predicts a MEGA boom & property prices to increase by 10% over the next 12 months .. anyone considering buying or moving upmarket should be advised to do so without delay .. the future is bright 🌟🌟🌟
“We have seen a renewed enthusiasm from prospective buyers who had all but given up on benefiting from the stamp duty holiday towards the end of February. This combined with the lack of available stock on the market is driving prices upwards and properties between the £300,000 to £500,000 mark are especially competitive.
We believe now is an ideal time to sell to make the most of this renewed optimism and the sooner the better in order to allow enough time to get the transaction through conveyancing before the stamp duty deadline. What happens to the market beyond the 30th June remains to be seen and will likely depend upon the wider socio-economic and political consequences of the pandemic.
I think it depends on where in the country you are based. In London, we have seen increased activity since the announcement but the market was picking up again anyway. I think prices may well rise as there is a property shortage in our area. We do need to see the lower end of the market pick up. Hopefully, the 5% deposit scheme will help our first-time buyers to get onto the property ladder.
“Demand has ignited again, the stamp duty extension together with the Govt guaranteed 95% lending by the major lenders will help buyers to buy now!! London & the south-east has remained buoyant in 2021 & we fully expect the sales market to be busy & prices to increase .. with interest rates remaining at all-time lows, 5% deposits & the Govt 300billion Covid support there is massive spending availability in the economy.
Now Brexit is executed whether you like it or not, Britain will push to ensure it is a success. We follow a brilliant behavioural economist Roger Martin Fagg who post-budget predicts a MEGA boom & property prices to increase by 10% over the next 12 months .. anyone considering buying or moving upmarket should be advised to do so without delay .. the future is bright 🌟🌟🌟
James Murphy, Sales Manager at Lovett Estate and Letting Agents
“We have seen a renewed enthusiasm from prospective buyers who had all but given up on benefiting from the stamp duty holiday towards the end of February. This combined with the lack of available stock on the market is driving prices upwards and properties between the £300,000 to £500,000 mark are especially competitive.
We believe now is an ideal time to sell to make the most of this renewed optimism and the sooner the better in order to allow enough time to get the transaction through conveyancing before the stamp duty deadline. What happens to the market beyond the 30th June remains to be seen and will likely depend upon the wider socio-economic and political consequences of the pandemic.
Wendy Peterman, Managing Director at Peterman Associates
I think it depends on where in the country you are based. In London, we have seen increased activity since the announcement but the market was picking up again anyway. I think prices may well rise as there is a property shortage in our area. We do need to see the lower end of the market pick up. Hopefully, the 5% deposit scheme will help our first-time buyers to get onto the property ladder.