AUTUMN HOUSING SALES SPIKE
After the base rate cut in August 2024, it was anticipated that housing sales would begin to pick up. However, early autumn has seen a housing sales spike come earlier than expected according to a swathe of industry figures, and it looks like the momentum is set to continue.
RICS Residential Survey shows increase in enquiries
The most recent evidence of the increases in both buyer and seller interest comes from September’s RICS Residential Survey. The results showed a net balance of 14% of respondents cited an increase in new buyer enquiries in September. It followed a 16% increase the month before.
Agreed sales in September also rose, up by 5%. Most encouragingly 23% of those surveyed said that they expect sales volumes to rise over the coming three months, while 45% expect them to rise over the year. The survey found that stock levels have also increased, rising to 44 properties per branch in September, the highest since December 2020.
More than half (54%) believe this will feed through to increased house prices over the next 12 months.
Halifax and Nationwide figures show house prices rising
New figures from Halifax also show house prices rising. They were up for the third month in a row in September with annual growth up by 4.7%. Halifax said that the number of agreed mortgages was also up by more than 40% in the last year, the highest level since July 2022.
Meanwhile, Nationwide reported UK prices up 3.2% year-on-year in September and said that London was the best-performing southern region with annual price growth of 2%.
Sales up according to Rightmove
Rightmove’s House Price Index for September showed that the number of sales agreed between buyers and sellers was up by 27% compared to last year. Increased activity levels had also pushed up prices and 14% new sellers were coming to market, closely matched by a 15% increase in the number of potential buyers contacting agents. The number of properties on sale per branch for estate agents was also its highest in a decade.
HMRC figures show transaction increase
HMRC figures, meanwhile, showed a 10% year-on-year increase in residential housing transactions, rising to 104,300 in August and up 8% from the month before.
Interest rate and mortgage rate cuts fuelling demand
The figures from all these sources are encouraging. The increase in activity is a result of the long-awaited release of demand in the market, fuelled by anticipation and then the reality of the August base rate cut which had prompted mortgage rate cuts even before it happened.
A further 0.25 percentage points base rate cut is expected in November and some believe a third 2024 reduction could also happen at the December meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee. Both meetings will follow Labour’s first budget since coming to power earlier this year. Changes around taxation, and particularly capital gains tax, are expected and could be behind some of the recent increases in activity as sellers look to list before the change.
Proctors is an independent network of individual estate agent businesses with branches in Beckenham, Bromley, Park Langley, Petts Wood, Shirley and West Wickham. We’ve been buying, selling and letting in these areas since 1946. Get in touch to find out how we can help you with your property requirements.