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A shortage of homes for sale means that it is now a seller’s market, with homebuyers forced to pay the asking price for homes rather than negotiating.
Buyers now end up paying around 97% of the asking price for their home in today’s market – the biggest rise since 2002. In London, homebuyers are paying 99% of the asking price on average.
Rising prices in the property market also mean that affordable housing is becoming increasingly hard to find.
Critics of the government’s Help to Buy scheme say that it has actually fuelled the rise in house prices across the country, adding to what some property experts are calling a property bubble.
It is also reported that in hotspots for buyers, gazumping has returned – ideally an estate agent should take a property off the market after an offer has been accepted by a seller, but competition for property means that interested buyers who might have missed out on a property they like are viewing it and then offering a higher price to the seller.
The average time it takes to sell a property has now fallen from 7.9 weeks to 6.3 weeks.
Last year, house prices in London rose by nearly 18% with a 9.1% increase across the rest of the country.
Latest figures show that between March and April this year, property prices rose by 0.6% across the country.
New stringent tests for homebuyers were also introduced this week, meaning more intrusive questioning from lenders about their finances and spending.
Some lenders are concerned that once interest rates start to rise again, many new homeowners will find they have not budgeted for any increase and may be unable to meet their mortgage repayments.
Duncan Lewis Housing Solicitors
Duncan Lewis is a leading firm of housing solicitors and can advise on debt and mortgage repossession, as well as unlawful eviction and disrepair of rental property.
Duncan Lewis is also a leading firm of Legal Aid solicitors and can help tenants with Local Authority housing issues and housing benefit.
For expert legal advice on housing law contact Duncan Lewis housing solicitors on 020 7923 4020.