The property market is rarely out of the newspapers and the past six months have been no different. Multiple interest rate hikes led to mortgages becoming more expensive and as a direct result, affordability for many buyers in the market changed overnight. As a new Prime Minister took office at the end of October the financial markets were settled and we started seeing normality return with all commentary suggesting the cost of lending was going to stabilise and likely soften in the first half of 2023. This is exactly what we have seen with mortgage product rates falling over the past three months. So what’s happened to property prices? There has certainly been a softening, with buyers being more reserved as the balance of control begins to swing to a buyers’ market rather than one in favour of the seller. However, there is one vital ingredient which is preventing the wholesale reductions the doomsayers have predicted; the lack of available property. Stock levels remain stubbornly low which is tonic keeping prices from falling back too much. Whilst prices have probably rolled back a year or 18 months, they are still well up on their level five years ago. Ebbs and flows, peaks and troughs – its normal for any market and in popular areas such as Wokingham, Crowthorne and Bracknell, I am confident that any softening of house prices will be muted in comparison to many areas of the UK.
It’s markets like this, particularly if you are upsizing, that can see real gains for the savvy seller or buyer and with little indication of anything changing in the near-term, if you want to move, then you can take advantage of stronger than average buyer demand whilst being in a less competitive environment that we would normally see at this time of year.