To work out what might happen to property prices in the future and whether now is a good time to buy, sell or invest, understanding what’s happening to demand and supply for property in your local area is essential.
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The FSSA data shows that with the exception of April and September, the ratio of properties for sale versus sold gradually increased to a height of 49.7% in November. However, the percentage dropped back in December and again in January 2014 to 40.2%. In a ‘normal market’, the average figure of properties for sale versus sold would typically be 40% so these figures would suggest the market is certainly becoming more ‘normal’, in other words, supply and demand are creating an active market.
There does however, remain huge regional contrasts, with Fleet in Hampshire recording the highest ratios of sold vs for sale boards at 73.8%, and Brigg and Scunthorpe in North Lincolnshire recording the lowest ratio at 10%, underlying the need to fully research your local property market and not rely on average figures and headlines.
How many viewings do you need to sell a home? How many weeks will it take to sell?
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The English Market
Hometrack’s data for January 2014 versus a year ago, shows key demand and supply indicators steadily rising. The percentage offer to asking price for England and Wales has now just exceeded the magic 95%, which is classed as a ‘normal market’, with the average number of weeks it takes to sell a property in England and Wales now standing at eight weeks, a drop from just over 10 weeks year ago.
The number of viewers it takes to secure an offer is also a good indicator of market trends, and during January 2014, this stood at 10.3 being unchanged from a year ago. Considering all the Hometrack data, this suggests we are, on average, heading towards a more ‘normalised market’, however, we also need to consider that property ‘volumes’ remain seriously low and are way down on pre-peak levels.
What’s Happening in Wales?
The time it takes to sell a property in Wales has fallen from 12.9 a year ago, to 9.6 weeks in January 2014. The offer to asking price percentage has increased compared to last year and is almost at the magic 95%, which would indicate that the Welsh property market is also heading towards a more ‘normalised’ market.
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There are of course regional differences, and according to Hometrack’s regional data, all areas have seen a rise in the average offer to asking prices and, with the exception of the North West where the time to sell remains the same as a year ago, a fall in the time it takes to sell a property year on year.
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