- UK average house prices increase 2.6% over the year to April 20201
Andy Sommerville, Director of Search Acumen, comments:
“This latest data reveals the positive path the UK property market was on before the pandemic hit.
“Annual house price growth in April was driven by a combination of greater political certainty, robust labour market conditions and low borrowing costs.
“It is no secret that in the months following April, the pandemic has knocked this momentum out of the UK property market. However, the tides are turning and more recent data has indicated a ‘mini boom’ as a result of the higher Stamp Duty threshold, a release of pent up demand as well as underlying demand as customers decide to move following their experiences of lockdown.
“The next challenge is for the Government to urgently address how it is going to bolster demand after the anticipated drop off once the Stamp Duty threshold is lowered again. This should come as part of a wider shake-up of the UK’s housing industry.
“Although the Government has taken initial action to improve England’s planning system, this overhaul must recognise the urgent need to implement widespread digitisation of the country’s housing industry. If fails to do so, it will not go far enough. New ways of thinking and greater collaboration around digital ways of working are needed now more than ever.”
1 Source: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/bulletins/housepriceindex/april2020
This article was submitted to be published by Search Acumen as part of their advertising agreement with Today’s Conveyancer. The views expressed in this article are those of the submitter and not those of Today’s Conveyancer.
