Housing demand continues surge with busiest November since records began
NAEA Propertymark’s November Housing Market Report confirmed back-to-back record-breaking months as November 2020 becomes the busiest November on record for housing demand and sales.
The number of prospective buyers increased by 29 per cent from October, from 451 to 580, making it the highest number recorded since August 2004.
With September, October and now November all reporting unprecedented figures, it shows the effect the Stamp Duty, Land Transaction Tax and Land and Buildings Transaction Tax holidays have had on the UK housing market, encouraging an influx of prospective buyers to attempt moving home before the 31 March 2021 deadline.
Record demand, record sales
The average number of sales agreed per estate agent branch increased to 13 from 12 in October, making it the highest figure on record since November 2002, which also stood at 13.
Year-on-year for the month of November, the average number of sales per branch has increased by a staggering 86 per cent, a sign of how unusual this amount of activity is for this time of year when traditionally the market slows down over the festive period.
First-timers and prices
The number of sales made to FTBs stood at 24 per cent in November, rising from 21 per cent in October. However, this is a slight reduction from 2019 where there were 28 per cent of sales made to FTBs.
In November, 10 per cent of properties sold for more than the original asking price, a slight rise from October, when seven per cent of properties sold for above the original asking price.
Mark Hayward, Propertymark Chief Policy Advisor, said:
“The pressure of completing a house purchase ahead of the stamp duty, LTT and LBTT holiday deadlines means we have seen an extremely high number of potential buyers flood the market in November, in the hope of finding their dream home.
“We remain very concerned about the impact of the Stamp Duty, LTT and LBTT cliff edges on 31 March, with nearly three in five (56 per cent) estate agents expecting to see an increase in failed sales next year due to buyers realising their sale will not complete ahead of the deadline.”
Campaign to extend Property Tax holiday
Propertymark is calling for an extension to the property tax holiday to avoid transactions falling through, price falls, and a sudden loss of momentum in the market:
Homeownership provides an increased sense of stability and security to people’s lives and the local communities in which they live.
Since the introduction of the cut to Stamp Duty/Land Transaction Tax/Land and Buildings Transaction Tax, the housing market has excelled
Moving to a new home has enormous knock-on benefits for the wider economy and a continued holiday on property tax would increase consumer confidence and encourage both upsizing and downsizing.
Extending the cut to property taxes would continue to support jobs in the sector and the wider economy.
Kindly shared by NAEA Propertymark
Main article photo courtesy of Pixabay
