London Market Comment Autumn 2014

Autumn is here and whilst the leaves may beginning to fall it seems that house prices are doing exactly the opposite. All of the top agents are quoting rises as much as 30% in the ‘non-prime’ areas of London (i.e WAndsowrth, Battersea, Richmond etc) and we are finding our network of contacts and estate agents as essential as ever.

Securing the property is only half the battle at the moment- it is getting in through the door to start with which is proving very difficult for many buyers. With the help to buy scheme looking set to start in January, as well as lenders being a little more relaxed on their criteria and extending the five year fixed terms, it appears that there is little to dampen the domestic buyer’s comeback to the market. In fact most estate agents are in agreement that at the moment the ‘suburbs’ of London are outsripping the price rises of Prime Central London.

So how do we feel this will play out? Well, with an ever increasing demand for stock as well as a lot of pent up buyers whom have not been able to get on with their move for a couple of years we can only see this continuing. However, as we advise our clients, this needs to be treated with caution and care as fingers have been burned before.

If you are finding it difficult to get in through the doors, find the time to call all of the relevant agents at least once a week and don’t know where to turn, please do not hesitate to contact us- our network and experience are invaluable in this market and we would be delighted to help.