Market Comment – April 2022

The housing market continued to remain busy during April and according to the Halifax figures, house prices rose 1.1% in April compared with March, which concludes that house prices have risen by 10.8% in the last year, taking the average property price to £286,000.79.

None of us can ignore that the cost of living and inflation is making a difference in most of our pockets, but it is my view that  buying a property and moving house remains as one of the main aspirations that our customers work towards, and whilst I accept that even with interest rates rising to the highest level in 13 years, I remain optimistic that whilst some may put a hold on moving, the majority of prospective house purchases and the momentum will continue. Many of us will remember interest rates at over 10% and much higher and therefore, when we look at the bigger picture, interest rates are still very low and money is still comparatively cheap to borrow.

In short, I foresee the next quarter being solid and strong, both in purchasing second hand homes and the new homes sector and my optimism is underpinned by our enquiry levels which have remained unchanged, in fact they have increased by 11% in the same month from 2021.

The rental market remains just as steady as ever, with a slight increase in three of our offices, Crystal Palace, Central Croydon and Purley seeing a spike in new prospective tenant enquiries. I predict that the rental market will remain strong in the areas we operate in for the rest of 2022, but I shall keep a close eye on this and report any changes back to you.