As we proceed into 2025, UK property information continues to say the headlines throughout a lot of the press. Let’s take a quick look behind a few of these tales to look at the state of the housing market because the yr begins and provide clues about the remainder of the yr forward.
UK housing market “begins new yr with a bang”
The yr has began with a surge within the variety of houses showing in the marketplace, reported the Guardian newspaper lately. There have been some 11% extra houses marketed on the market throughout this January than in the identical month final yr.
Heralding what is predicted to be an particularly energetic market, the newspaper cited on-line listings web site Rightmove’s findings that common costs have additionally registered a notable leap ahead. A typical residence was listed on the market at £366,189 throughout January – a 1.7% enhance of £5,992 and the most important spurt in costs to begin any new yr since 2020.
Elevated confidence on the a part of potential patrons might assist to elucidate this renewed buoyancy out there. As rates of interest have already fallen to some extent, patrons seem like taking consolation from the prospect of additional cuts in rates of interest mixed with a potential fall within the fee of inflation to 2.5%.
Regardless of these opening strengths of the market, common home costs nonetheless lag as much as £9,000 decrease than the all-time information achieved in Could of final yr.
15m houses gained £7,600 in worth over 2024
The New Yr’s overview of the housing market by on-line listings web site Zoopla on the 15th of January revealed that half of all UK houses – that’s round 15 million dwellings – elevated in worth by £7,600 or extra through the course of final yr.
Not all properties fared so effectively, in fact. Round one-third of houses – largely within the southeast of England – noticed a slight drop in worth as a result of the upper value of borrowing had diminished buying energy.
The general impression on costs throughout all 30 million houses was calculated as a mean enhance of £2,400.
Essentially the most sluggish of will increase – with simply 36% registering an increase in costs – had been in houses within the south of England; 62% of these within the north of the nation and Scotland noticed will increase; whereas 70% of these within the northeast gained in worth. The best good points – of a mean £4,400 – had been seen within the northwest.
The newest on the Renters’ Rights Invoice because it strikes to the Home of Lords
On the 14th of January, the landlords’ foyer group Propertymark criticised numerous amendments to the Renters’ Rights Invoice because it passes up from the Home of Commons to the Lords for additional scrutiny. Specifically, it argued in opposition to the proposals to:
- restrict to at least one month the quantity of lease landlords might cost tenants prematurely;
- limit the flexibility of landlords to repossess student-let property;
- charges raised from landlords getting used to fund the proposed new non-public rented sector Ombudsman; and
- the creation of a register of landlords and the upkeep of a landlord’s database.
Propertymark is anxious that whereas the amendments may seem to favour tenants, within the longer run the disincentives for landlords might lead to fewer and costlier properties within the non-public rented sector.
Petition calls for EPC equality for personal rental properties
A narrative in Landlord In the present day final month described a petition to the Home of Commons by a personal sector landlord calling for the strict power effectivity necessities for rental houses to be utilized to all kinds of housing – regardless of the tenure.
The petitioner is making his bid following affirmation from Ed Miliband the Vitality Secretary that every one houses within the non-public rented sector might want to have an Vitality Efficiency Certificates (EPC) ranking of C – or higher – by the yr 2030.