NORMAL SERVICE IS RESUMED - 01/05/2012
It is the height of the moving season and Nick Churton of the London Mayfair office takes a look at how the property market is shaping up this spring.
Here we go again. Double dip. What will the property market do now? When will it ever get back to normal?
Well, the mortgage lenders are still being difficult and the conveyancers seem to be taking forever to process sales. Buyers are being especially choosy and, bizarrely, some are even letting the internet influence what they should pay for a property rather than the market. Some sellers still think it is 2006 with prices to match. Surveyors are ever more cautious.
These are everyday issues that affect all those involved in buying and selling property. Plus there are the other annoyances like Stamp Duty changes, and confused and conflicting reports made by industry ‘insiders’ in the press.
What should a sensible buyer or seller do? The answer is to forget all of the above and get on with your move.
If you wait for things to get back to normal you will wait forever because there is no normal in property. We are where we are now. Tomorrow may be better or it may be worse. But who really knows. So make the most of it now and move on. Don’t look back.
There may be ups and there will certainly be downs along the way. But the best advice from the people who understand the property market most of all – estate agents - is don’t wait for things to get back to normal. This is normal, or as normal as it gets.
