East Midlands Property Market Comment

As the country continues to ease out of lockdown the East Midlands property market has never been busier. Many people have reevaluated their lives over the past year and unsurprisingly we have seen a strong demand from people in London and other cities who are craving more outside and inside space and wishing to take advantage of the affordable house prices that the East Midlands continues to offer coupled with the areas superb air, road and rail links.

Over the last few years the market towns of Newark on Trent and Grantham and their nearby villages have seen a steady rise in popularity for commuters as there are regular fast trains to London’s Kings Cross. However, some are realising that they will not need to do a daily commute into the City as working from home over the last year due to Covid has been successful. This in turn has opened up other areas in the East Midlands for ‘part time’ commuters that they may not have considered before.

However, there remains to be a shortage of good properties on the market (although this should ease as more people gain confidence thanks to the successful rollout of the COVID vaccine.

With such a robust property market, now more than ever, it is so important to have an independent buying agent representing you on what is likely to be your biggest financial investment to make sure you find the right house at the right price and on terms to suit you.

Since the easing of lockdown on May 13th,  the reopening of the housing market has been energetic. While there still remains a shortage of properties on the market, estate agents are now busy valuing properties and sales are being agreed.

 The lockdown has given many the chance to reflect on their lives and for a lot of us our  needs have now changed. A huge proportion of us have been working from home and many along side children doing school work and this undoubtedly will have an impact on what we want from our homes moving forward. In recent times, there has been a desire for smaller low maintenance gardens but post lockdown  will see many hankering after larger outdoor space. Open plan spaces in our homes have been popular for a long time now but with more people continuing to work from home many will have a need for extra rooms in order to work. The lockdown has resulted in a strong community spirit with people helping out neighbours so desirable villages will undoubtedly see an increase in popularity.

The country has now seen nearly 3 1/2 years of political uncertainty and we now face a General Election in December. Notwithstanding this, the housing market has remained reasonably stable whilst the East Midlands has seen steady growth in prices, up 2.6% for the 12 month period ending August 2019 according to the latest Office of National Statistic figures.

The area has continues to receive a rise in commuters relocating to the area because of the superb air, road and rail links that the East Midlands enjoys. A common misconception is that there are very few buyers but we have a number of clients who need to move and carry on with their lives regardless of Brexit. There still remains a shortage of good properties on the market and properties with no blights marketed at the right price are selling quickly and sometimes in a bidding competition. Our advice is do not put your life on hold!

Our clients continue to employ Stacks because they want professional representation on what is possibly the biggest financial investment they will ever make. Purchasing the right house at the right price and on terms to suit them is the value add we offer.