An improvement in the housing market has been seen in the first half of the year, with instruction levels up 10 per cent on the same period last year and a surge of activity in May and June, Waterfords estate agents has noted.
Recent data from the Bank of England revealed that British mortgage approvals hit a three and a half year high in May. Brendan Cox, Managing Director of Waterfords says the positive impact of slightly more lenient lending criteria towards both new purchases and remortgages is being felt across the market.
He comments “Whilst we don’t expect to see a return to ‘the boom’ years, it is a very promising sign that lenders are coming up with better multiples on borrowers’ annual income and higher loan to value offers which are making it easier for people to contemplate a move.”
Waterfords says that whilst it is still too early to accredit governmental initiatives with the change, positive steps and media messages do finally appear to be filtering through, improving market sentiment and encouraging buyers and sellers to test the water. Many prices within the areas they operate have not only recovered but are now exceeding their previous highest values.
“Governments don’t make markets, confidence makes the property market, which in turn drives so many other areas of our economy and there are strong signs that the market is now more active than it has been for years” says Brendan.
As a general rule, the sales and lettings markets run opposed to one other, so improved activity in the sales market has meant slightly slower growth in lettings compared to the first six months of 2012. Despite this, Waterfords says demand from tenants has not waned but stock levels are slightly diminished which could be a result of some ‘accidental landlords’ deciding the time is right to sell up, after delaying when the market dipped. Brendan goes on to add
“The lettings market remains steady but is going through a period of change. I don’t believe it will significantly drop because for some, the culture and attitude towards home ownership has shifted. As a result, more investors are considering starting up or adding to existing buy-to-let portfolios and with more attractive buy-to-let mortgage schemes available, it is only a matter of time until we see this.”
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