It has been quite a few months in my world of #Hertfordshire #property!
I am often asked how I think the market is going. It is impossible to answer this question in a macro sense - every sector of the market is operating differently at the moment.
I operate in a narrow sector of the market - mainly high value properties in just two Home Counties. There is much of the market that I can’t profess to know much about. But in my sector I have deep knowledge of the houses that are transacting right now, and the current sentiment of buyers and sellers.
Despite the economic uncertainty and turmoil, pricing in the prime sector remains strong. The supply of good quality prime houses is low, and has been low for a while. Yet some buyers still need to move for all the usual positive reasons, such as change of lifestyle, new schooling, downsizing, and for all the usual negative reasons such as death, divorce and debt. So buyer demand remains high. Many buyers in my sector are largely untouched by current economic factors such as increased cost of living and high interest rates. These buyers are able to take a long term view of property prices, and are still willing and able to make strong bids for the best houses. This means that property prices for good houses are holding in my sector.
That being said, sellers are being slow to catch up with the reality of current market conditions - many sellers with somewhat compromised houses are taking a far too bullish approach to their house value and they need to be ready to negotiate or they could find themselves kicking themselves in a couple of years time. Cash buyers ought to be snapped up by sellers as financing becomes more and more difficult, with banks slashing valuations in order to de-risk. In short, it’s a bit of a minefield out there at the moment.
As a buyer, it’s important to know what your options are (both on and #offmarket), to concentrate on the reasons for your move, to know where to compromise and where not to, to understand the motivations of the seller and to understand the micro climate in order to negotiate well. It's important to be close enough to the market to know what other buyers are out there and to know what other opportunities may or may not be round the corner. I can help with all these things. Contact me at emmasiddons.com
