According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), residential property sales reached their highest level for seven years in May of this year.
There was a total of 103,100 residential sales – a rise of 123.4% year-on-year. However, there were cautions that direct annual comparisons are problematic due to the closure of the housing market for several months of 2020 as the pandemic took hold.
Figures for the first quarter of last year show that there was a total of 392,860 residential sales in the UK. This is the highest quarterly total since 2006.
It is believed that these figures are largely a result of the stamp duty holiday that was implemented last year and ran until the end of March in Scotland and to the end June in England and Wales. In addition, the introduction of the mortgage guarantee scheme resulted in high transaction volumes as people were once again able to secure 95% mortgages.
Since the property market reopened, there has been a surge in buying and selling with the market returning to the underlying trend of growth, albeit at a lower level than before. This has been further boosted by the low cost of borrowing and lack of supply. The stamp duty (LBTT) holiday proved to be an important factor in helping second-steppers and buyers of more expensive properties move up the ladder, enabling those at the lower end to buy starter homes.
If you are considering taking advantage of today’s buoyant market, contact Nicol Estate Agents to talk about how we can help you to achieve your moving goals.