Photographer: Jason Alden / Bloomberg
Photographer: Jason Alden / Bloomberg
UK home prices fell in January as sellers tried to speed up discounted transactions before ending a temporary sharp tax cut on home buying – although many deals will miss the deadline anyway, according to Rightmove.
The average asking price fell by 0.9% that month, which seems to attract those who moved sales at the last minute, said the largest property site in the UK. However, out of 613,000 agreements already in progress, about 100,000 are expected to close after the March 31 deadline, which means they will face tax bills up to £ 15,000 ($ 20,000) more. bigger than she would have had.
While activity in the first few weeks of January usually sets the tone for the rest of the year, Covid-related market closures and stimulus-boosting stamp holidays are likely to affect figures in 2021.
Tim Bannister, data director at Rightmove, said the main difference between the first blockade in the UK last year and the current one was that the real estate market was open this time, so that “changed housing priorities can be, therefore, more easily satisfied ”.
As more people work remotely and do their homework, they searched for homes with more space – indoors and out – raising the market after the initial shock of the pandemic, despite the biggest economic crisis in three centuries. The number of sales agreed last year increased by 10 in 2019.
Matthew Smith, director of sales and rentals at Thornley Groves, Manchester, said the desire to grow in the suburbs is the main driver of sales.
“I don’t think the high levels of activity we’re seeing right now are solely due to the fiscal holiday,” he said. “People were simply given the impetus to be careful when moving home, which in turn led to greater demand.”