Have you started the year with itchy feet and the wish to get them walking into a new home? Given the way interest rates have gone in the past few years, it’s understandable if you are questioning whether it’s a good time to move.
Maybe you spent 2023 on hold, waiting for something better to happen to the housing market. Maybe you’re finally in a position to buy and escape the insecure rental market. Could this year be better?
Well, it’s fair to say that there hasn’t been a good time to buy or sell for a while now. When we look back at different time periods, we appreciate how good the buying conditions were, but at the time they would have been filled with fear and apprehension, nonetheless. In short – is there ever really a good time to make a move and buy a house? The best way for you to know if it’s the right time for you is to research and apply the answers to your situation. So, what might 2024 hold in store?
How it’s looking
There’s been a lot of talk about a mortgage price war, with the cost of borrowing coming down on some mortgages, but for first time buyers, they are still stuck with a higher rate. However, given the alternative of increasing rental costs and insecure tenancies, many may take the leap and hope.
According to insights from This is Money and Which? this year could see those who hesitated to make a move in 2023 feeling in a better place to take that step.
Many analysts are forecasting that the Bank of England’s base rate will fall in 2024, while mortgage rates are once again below 4%. People who may have found themselves unable to qualify for a mortgage before may see this as their chance, if mortgage rates are on their side. Whether sellers are happy that they are getting close to their asking price is another thing.
While house prices fell slightly last year, it is predicted that this will continue in 2024, but without the huge drop that many people need. We are yet to see whether this will help mortgage approvals along and get the market moving.
PM Rishi Sunak says we aren’t likely to see a general election in the first half of 2024, which may be good news according to a study published in the International Journal of Housing Markets and Analysis by academics Bismarck Aha, David Higgins and Timothy Leet (2022): “While there is no evidence that house prices in the UK performed significantly differently under different political parties, we observed that house prices performed much better in the last year before an election, compared to the first year after an election.”
Maybe it is case of sooner is better than later.
When is the best time to buy?
When you’re ready. If you need a home and you’ve found one that you can comfortably afford, that’s the prime time to buy.
What if you are selling?
Once you’ve decided to move on from your home you’ll no doubt want to get moving as soon as you can. It will help to avoid being talked into overinflating your house price, if you can, to speed up the sale and allow competitive buyers to open the bidding.
And when you’re moving…
We will of course be here to help you on your moving day, the preparation before and any storage that you may need. Please get in touch to find out more.