Bank of England Maintains Bank Rate at 0.5%
Are you an Accidental Landlord?
The downturn in housing turnover over the past two years promptedmany contractors to let their old properties out rather than sell at aloss, this has in effect turned a large number of contractors into"Accidental Landlords"
The surge in these so-called 'accidental landlords' has limited thesupply of property in the sales market and increased the stock of homesavailable to let.
The good news for buyers is that all the signs show that many ofthese homeowners now have an opportunity to sell, shifting a largenumber of properties across from the inflated rental market to thesales market.
An Opportunity to Sell:
David Smith, of property consultancy Carter Jonas, said anyonehoping to sell now had a "window of opportunity" that might soon shut.
"We have to expect more turbulence ahead, specifically as a result of rising unemployment and interest rates," he said.
"This toxic combination will bring more property on to the market aspeople struggle to meet their repayments, which will apply downwardpressure on prices and potentially reverse the recent trend, at leastfor a time," he added.
House Prices Continue to Recover
Latest figures reported by the Nationwide suggest that house figures have recovered to the same level as a year ago.
For five consecutive months house prices have risen and the latestrise of 0.9% brings the average UK Horse price to £161,816 matchingthe average price for September last year.
"The most intense phase of the recession and financial crisis hasprobably passed," said Martin Gahbauer, the Nationwide's chiefeconomist.
"However, given that the housing market still faces considerableheadwinds in the form of high unemployment, restrictive creditconditions and an impending withdrawal of the stamp duty holiday, itwould be surprising to see house prices continuing to increase at thevery strong rate seen in recent months," he added.
Options for Contractors & Freelancers
Taj Kang, Associate Director at CMME, can see good opportunities for those who are thinking of buying a new home.
"Reluctant owners of second properties may now be marketing theirproperties for sale. This will mean there could be more housing stockon the market for contractors and freelancers thinking of buying theirnew home. The withdrawal of the stamp duty holiday at the end of theyear means that there is also a good financial incentive for thoselooking to secure that new property sooner rather than later."
Publisher
Ian Burrows
Marketing Director
Contractor Mortgages Made Easy
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