The number of people moving home this year reached the highest level since 2007, according to data released by Halifax.
The mortgage lender revealed the number of movers had more than doubled in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period in the previous year, with 265,000 people purchasing properties.
This was 151,040 more than the first half of 2020, a hike of 132%.
What’s more in the 12 months to June 2021, 461,010 home moves took place, up by more than 50% on the previous 12 months, the Halifax Home Mover Review revealed.
Indeed, Halifax said, the total number of moves in the last year was almost 100,000 more than at any point in the last 10 years.
Andrew Asaam, mortgages director for Halifax, said: “The rate and scale of the growth of the home mover market is quite remarkable.
“After several years of flat transaction numbers then a marked fall at the start of the pandemic, we’re now at a level not seen since 2007.”
Race for space
One of the factors which had driven the steep rise, according to Andrew, was the so-called ‘Race for Space’ – the trend created by pandemic for workers planning to work from home for the long term to relocate to from urban areas.
He added: “The timing of some these moves will also have been influenced by people wanting to benefit from the Stamp Duty holiday.”
First-time buyers
The data also showed how first-time buyer numbers had also increased during the first half of the year. There were 210,900 transactions involving buyers taking their first step on the property ladder – an increase of 74% on the same six months last year.
Halifax said first-time buyers accounted for nearly half (44%) of all sales in the period.
Andrew added: “It is important to recognize the boom in sales was not limited to movers.
“There were more first-time buyers in the first six months of this this year, than in the first half of any of the last 10 years. Those getting on to the housing ladder accounted for almost half of all mortgage-backed purchases, which is in line with the long-term average.”
