So how is the property market in North Yorkshire?
Welcome to the October property market update from Love Property. It’s been an interesting month and whilst there are few buyers on the ground the buyers that are out there are very serious but what are the home buyers looking for?
So how is the property market for home sellers in North Yorkshire?
You may think it is a bad time to sell your home, but some recent offers in say otherwise, a couple of homes even attracting multiple offers above the listing price. There are some really good opportunities for home sellers to still cash in on there great returns they’ve made from the pandemic boom but with a word of caution, be reasonable and listen to what the market is telling you. If you are on the market for sale and have no viewings there may be a problem, if you are having plenty of viewings but no offers there may be a problem!
Over the last couple of years, you have had to fight to secure a property compared to now where there is plenty of choice, putting homebuyers into a much nicer position. It us a breath of fresh are being able to take your time and not to have to rush into a decision that could see you in your new home for the next decade or more.
I have seen a surprising amount of movers that rushed into buying a home only to find the area was totally unsuitable and within 12 months they are moving again.
So when you consider that even though you may not get the queues out the door for your house, you will benefit from being able to choose your next home in your own time and have the luxury of time to think!
What can I do if I am struggling to sell?
It can be really frustrating when you advertise your home for sale, originally confident it would be snapped up quickly, then weeks or months later it is festering with no activity at all. You think there is nothing to be done but actually you couldn’t be further from the truth.
What is even more interesting is many homes think that reducing the price is the only option when it comes to finding a buyer but we all know that price is often not a deciding factor when it comes to those all important life choices.
This has become apparent with some recently marketed homes that have come to Love Property, previously on the market, and some cases we have even put the price up and agreed a sale. What was different? More focus on the marketing and negotiation, and both of these, when done right can and will enhance the value of your home.
We advise any home sellers that are thinking of selling to be patient, make sure that you have done everything that you can to secure the best buyer, these things include home, presentation, great, marketing, and a sales team that supports your aspirations which will help you find that all important buyer.
Should you buy now?
The question I am being asked all the time is whether the housing market will crash and whether house prices will continue to side and if so is it better to wait to buy?
House prices are holding surprisingly well in this area, we look specifically at the core of DL7 - DL11 and even though we cannot be as ambitious as we once may have been, you can still get good returns as long as the property is presented to the market in the right way. The buoyancy of the market is speculated to remain as it is for next 2-5 years and really a lot will depend on the mortgage interest rate levels and economy in general.
When you consider buyers ability to borrow has been impacted significantly over the last couple of years, and with the increase in interest rates, borrowing power for the average home mover has dropped by 20%, some homebuyers who needed more space can no longer afford the home that would give them a much-needed fourth bedroom, so they are staying put and making tea.
We have home buyers that want to buy but simply can’t secure finance at an affordable rate. Hopefully this will change and we have already seen some mortgage lenders bringing rates for fixed mortgages below the 5%. Currently the lowest is at 4.82 on a 60% loan to value mortgage fixed for five years .
If you are interested in how the market has affected your home price, and I’m interested in what buyers are looking for moments, particularly how you feel your house would be deceived if it were to come to market, please get in touch with us.
Local facts and figures
From the statistics we took from September across the DL7 - DL11, we can see the buyers are mainly shopping in the £125,000-£250,000 price bracket, this is a change as for the majority of 2023 where we have seen buyers mainly looking in the £250,000 to £500,000 bracket.
We have seen a shift showing the buyers and investors at the bottom end of the market are starting to come out again. This is actually really good news even though if you have a £500,000+ property that you were thinking of selling as the movement always has to start at the bottom of the market to facilitate the mid and upper market to move.
The house style that is selling the most is the terraced style which fits in with the pricing purchase level being below £250,000 on average.
Which areas are the most popular?
As you will see three out of the five areas are seeing significantly less sales than last year but a couple are on the up and the reason for this is that the amount of homes available for sale is around double what was available in the same period last year.
A full overview of the area compared to last year shows just how things have changed. The most noticeable difference is reductions increasing by a massive 200% and an 82% increase in homes available for sale.
There are several factors impacting this, over supply and over ambition with pricing. Motivated sellers are having to reduce over ambitious prices to attract the buyers that are now spoilt for choice.
Chicken and egg
Another issues that is stalling the market is lots of ‘potential’ buyers who don’t want to market their own house until they found that perfect home, the problem with this is as we’ve seen recently is money people would love to buy a house and are putting offers in, but don’t have their own house even up for sale.
This is a problem, because whilst you may have a very attractive home that would usually sell quickly, that isn’t necessarily what may happen now and we would recommend anyone that is serious about moving to market their own property to see how much interest there is and just how quickly it may take to secure a buyer. Just to give you an idea it take the average home seller at the moment, 16 weeks on average across the country to secure a buyer, that is a very long time, especially when you’re under pressure because you found your dream home!
If you want to chat about how the market might be affecting your home please call us on 01748 834373 or email laura@lovepropertyuk.co.uk