UK Housing Market – Crash, Gentle Fall or No Change?

The jury is still out on the impact the high rate of inflation and cost of living crisis will have on the UK housing market.  Couple this with the increased Bank of England Base rate to 1.75% and you could be thinking a crash is inevitable.

Zoopla thinks a crash is unlikely, especially double-digit falls of average prices. Rightmove have seen a 1.3% fall in July 2022 compared to July last year, but it’s never wise to read too much into single month figures and especially during the summer season when traditionally house sale volumes drop away until the autumn.

There’s no doubt the UK housing market is in a state of flux, and many are reading the tea leaves and saying that now the market is on the turn and 10 years of rising prices is ending.

The problem is that although mortgages cost more and there are now mortgage products for 50 years, the demand remains high. Landlords continue to pull out of the Private Rented Sector, the bank of Mum & Dad continue to support first-timers and there is a massive social housing demand.

We believe prices will decline but nothing like 2007-2009 when we saw falls of 35%+. Demand is still there because people need a roof over their head and perhaps as less people bid on properties for sale the prices may stabilise rather than fall.

For our clients using our Guaranteed Sales Price service, we shall continue to carefully monitor the Asking Price and in conjunction with you we will react swiftly to any substantial movements and get ahead of the curve.