So whats going to happen to the property market now!?
Ive just walked through Sainsburys to get some hand sanitiser and its all gone… Im must admit this is not really a surprise! But it does show that people are taking this potentially fatal virus seriously.
If we get a widespread outbreak and the worst possible case scenario happens. I expect this will mean periods of quarantine for those infected, which will knock on to everything in our society taking longer…. We will have to wait for everything… time and patience will be stretched, but we can do that, were British! It will also mean a further drop in share prices for the big UK companies as they take a hit on production and shortages of staff. But people will still need a place to live. People will still be up-sizing when they have a baby and downsizing when the kids finally leave the nest! People will still be changing jobs and retiring to the country. If prices stagnate or even drop a little… people still move!
What you have to remember is that people who are already in a chain and have committed to it, will generally carry on with it.. because it suits their life.
If you have an investor in the chain, it might be worth checking on them to make sure they are still solid on the purchase as they are the potential weak link.
I say this because investors will be out to get the best deal. I dont believe that prices are going to fall and that the world is going to collapse in on itself, but some investors and speculative first time buyers will be mindful of that potential… and they of course would quite like to see prices reduce… so that they can buy at a cheaper rate!
This means we will see some hesitance in the market place. This I would suggest is going to be relatively short lived because we all have lives to get on with and property is still selling.
Price reductions across Norwich are down… as is the number of new properties coming to market. So this is a supply and demand situation.
The USA have just dropped interest rates as an emergency measure, so the question for a few buyers will be… will the UK? I think that the sensible money in that question will be with the person looking at the home of their dreams and making the decision that yes.. I am going to buy this property, because I dont want to loose it by waiting to save a few pounds a month on my mortgage payment! Besides which there isn’t much room to drop rates further. Money is extremely cheap to borrow right now.
This is only my opinion… and if you would like to discuss the option of selling your home please do get in touch on 01603 432000.
