It’s been an interesting journey for the housing market during the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown. The ban on house viewings in Peterborough and house moves bought the property market to a near-total standstill. But how are things looking as we begin to come out the other end?
We have been back a few weeks now and we have been dealing with a great demand. There are a lot of serious buyers, as well as a lot of people wanting to sell. It still remains to be seen if this is simply a case of ‘pent up demand’. However, as things stand now – it is very positive. We have seen no evidence of house prices in Peterborough softening.
There is some brilliant data out there that can help you gain a rough idea of what your home may be worth. For example, the Land Registry monthly house price reports or RightMove reports for example. It is important to note that the housing market in Peterborough has been on hold for a while. It will take a few months for good quality data to be created again as signs of normality start to show.
Currently it is very hard to predict whether house prices in Peterborough will fall after lockdown. The nature of the current crisis is larger and completely different to anything we have experienced before. In this situation the crisis has been caused by global health, as opposed to economic circumstances.
The nearest comparison is the house price crash in 2008. However, this was partly bought on by tough restrictions on borrowing. With some mortgage suppliers we have seen similar circumstances to the 2008 credit crunch. At this time homebuyers in Peterborough needed a 40% to 50% deposit to get approved for a mortgage. Things are not quite at this stage now, but those with lower deposits are struggling to get mortgages during these uncertain times.
Some housing market experts believe that house prices have lowered and they will rise again by 2022. Savills have reviewed their five year forecast and predicted that house prices will drop between 5% and 10%, recovering slightly in 2021 and then there will be a real surge in 2022.
If you are considering selling your home or buying a new home, we recommend you give us a call. As you can see in the media, things are changing all the time. We will give you the latest housing market updates for Peterborough and help you make the best decision going forward.
