The UK’s property market appears to be showing signs of recovery, with confidence among buyers and sellers improving, new research suggests.
The TwentyCi Property & Homemover Report for the first quarter of 2018 found that exchanges on property transactions have increased by eight per cent compared to this time last year, with the organisation also noting that an additional 100,000 properties have come onto the market since the beginning of 2018.
What’s more, it’s the older generation who appear to be the most active, with those aged 55 and older most likely to be moving home.
According to the research, 46 per cent more property exchanges occurred among sellers and buyers in this age group between January and March than in the same period in 2017.
The company noted that this is “undoubtedly fuelled by a combination of pension drawdown and equity retrieval as the baby boom generation access the wealth accumulated in their properties and pensions”.
However, that’s not to say that those at the other end of the market haven’t been active as well, with the study noting that over half of all the exchanges recorded in the first quarter of this year were for smaller properties, such as terraced or semi-detached homes.
What’s more, almost 20 per cent of exchanges were for a flat, with demand for this kind of home up ten per cent year-on-year.
Those looking to get on the property ladder for the first time may also be interested in research conducted by Furniture Choice, which identified the best places in the UK for first-time buyers to set up home.
The survey was based on average first-time buyer property prices, the percentage difference between this and subsequent homes, local unemployment levels and average local salaries. The top three locations were all in the north-west of the UK, in areas close to cities like Manchester and Liverpool.
Pendle in Lancashire came top of the list, with the organisation noting that the average cost of a first-time buyer home here is £87,769 and that there is just a 27 per cent difference between this and the cost of a second-step home.
One thing to bear in mind when you’re searching for a property to buy, whether it’s your first home or a chance to move somewhere larger, is that commuting can be worth the effort.
The TwentyCi report used the end of the Severn Crossing toll charges as an example to show how moving to South Wales but commuting to Bristol could be beneficial. According to the organisation, house prices fell by an average of £6,000 for every mile you went past the border into Wales.
However, living in South Wales still meant you’d have a commute of less than an hour to get to Bristol.
For those living in London or the South East of the UK this is definitely something worth bearing in mind, although popular commuter belt areas can be expensive for precisely this reason.
Whatever stage you are at, you need to make sure that any property transaction is handled efficiently and goes smoothly. Make sure you work with experienced conveyancing solicitors in Surrey to take some of the stress out of purchasing a home and moving.
