People more optimistic about the housing market

It seems people are becoming more optimistic about the housing market and this is coupled with changing attitudes towards house buying and selling prices but is the housing market over the worst?

According to research from The Co-operative Bank Mortgages, some 35% of those selling houses now won’t drop their asking price to sell.

Interestingly some 12% of buyers equally won’t offer the full asking price.

Vendors are taking steps though to ensure their house has the best chance of selling, including

• 49% – repainting the house
• 11% – throwing in extras such as furniture
• 10% – selling via additional routes, such as a private sale
• 10% – sending pets away during viewings
• 5% – using feng sui layout techniques

and 2% even borrow a more expensive car to park in front during the viewings!

Those buying houses are mostly looking for more space, simply ready for a change or looking to move up the property ladder and take advantage of the cheaper house prices.

With the news yesterday from the British Banker’s Association (BBA) that there was a significant rise in the number of new home purchase loans that were approved in July, there are some encouraging signs in the housing market.

Whilst it seems we could be over the worst, the threat of rising unemployment and continued wider concerns in the economy could still dampen the market as we go into next year.

Meantime, many of those with mortgages are seeking to take advantage of low interest rates and make mortgage overpayments, something well worth considering if you are in a postion to – our article ‘Mortgage overpayment, is it worth it?‘ explains more.