Hi I’m Sam from Fine & Country, back again for an August 2020 market update. 

Well the post lock down surge of interest that we talked of shows no sign of slowing down as we traditionally enter the ‘holiday period’  a notably quieter time in most cases as the buying public are trading in the UK for hotter climes. But the Spring market has effectively been forced into the Summe, with local transactions peaking in June and July and sales 15% up on last year according to Rightmove, whilst buyer demand has doubled according to Zoopla’s statistics.

Watch this video to find out more about the Rugby property market update …

Of course in early July the Chancellor announced that buyers would be relieved of the stamp duty burden for purchases up to £500,000 and effectively those buying homes in the premium market would be saving huge sums under the new levels. According to Rightmove the number of monthly sales agreed increased from a 15% to a 35% year-on-year increase following the announcement in the 8th July. 

Obviously the stamp duty relief is only until March 2021 and has acted as a strong injection of positivity, in what was already a lively market place in the areas I cover. I know I speak for all my colleagues in the industry but it certainly feels like we have done 4 months work in just 2 months with the activity levels higher than at any level in the last 10 years that I can remember. 

Instruction levels have remained fairly consistent in the region but there is a clear need for moire listings to supply the demand, the last 2 months of sales has seen buyers on average pay 98.2 % of the asking price for an F&C listing illustrating the new found confidence that buyers have found, coupled with the historically low interest rates which are no doubt helping the market navigate through such unprecedented times. The Government has identified the property market as essential to any upturn in economic growth and so far as a steady flow of transactions begin to complete it is clear that the new home owners become spenders in other areas that will have a positive impact on other industries that have suffered the effects of the pandemic. 

What is clear is that we really do need more listings to supply the demand, especially as the turn of the year will be soon upon us and then there will be a mad race to complete sales before the end of March 2021, causing huge stress to the conveyancing industry, so selling now will ensure we have the buffer zone of an Autumn market place so we can design a bespoke strategy to agree a sale quickly and at the best possible price.

So if you are interested in selling your home or alternatively struggling with your sale one of our competitors then I would love to hear from in the next few weeks. 

In the meantime stay safe and I look forward to talking again in September 

Bye for now.