Paul and Kevin take a look at the latest market trends and consider what we may see for the rest of 2016…
The opening quarter of 2016 has been very interesting in the residential property market. Whilst national statistics can vary considerably, especially when London and the surrounding areas are included, we feel it is very important to focus on our market in Lincolnshire to ensure we give our clients the best advice possible.
During the first quarter of this year, two factors that have influenced the property market are the changes to stamp duty relating to investors buying buy to let property and the recent legislation change relating to houses of multiple occupancy, both of which have and will have an impact on areas such as Lincoln.
First Time Buyer registration saw a significant growth and was up by 18%
Whilst our statistics show a slowing in new investor buyers after January, due to the above changes, we have seen a significant uplift in the number of first time buyers registering as potential buyers. We believe that the current government strategies are to achieve the above, i.e. reduce the number of Buy to Let landlord purchases and introduce more first time buyers back into the market place.
The only factor in Lincolnshire that prohibits this remains the size of deposit required for young people to enter the property market. If a potential first time buyer has a deposit (often via the bank of mum and dad) the current mortgage rates both short and long term are very attractive and the cost of buying is often less than renting.
Having analysed property prices for the first quarter of 2016 against the same period in 2015, the statistics are very encouraging for those clients considering selling in the second quarter of this year. Pygott and Crone’s average price of a new property to the market, on average across all offices and price ranges, is up by 11%; obviously some areas and property types have varied more than others.
Looking at Sold subject to contract prices, these have risen by 18%; this rise results from a combination in the increase in asking price and the fact that buyers have had to pay much closer to the asking price for a property than this time last year due to supply and demand. Housing stock within Pygott and Crone is at an all-time low and this means that buyers have less choice and more competition which has fuelled the growth to date. Across the group we were instructed to sell over 600 properties in the first quarter of 2016 and sold subject to contract over 550 properties, which demonstrates that accurately priced property combined with attractive borrowing terms is ensuring positive results for sellers.
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