The supply of properties for sale in Britain increased by 15% in September, according to the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) with demand amongst buyers also growing to levels unseen since March 2016. These increasing levels of available properties for sale are benefitting markets that have historically struggled, such as first-time buyers due to the reduced levels of competition per property.
The number of properties available per member branch of the NAEA increased from 40 to 46 in September, with numbers of registered house-hunters also increasing from 320 to 338. This is good news for many as the increased supply of housing should lead to better accessibility to the housing market as voracious levels of competition reduce. There should be no surprise, therefore, that twinned with the housing supply increase there has been an increase in the volume of first-time buyer transactions. With recent government schemes to aid those looking to get a first step upon the property ladder, such as the Help-to-Buy scheme where buyers can purchase as little as 25% of a home and pay rent for the remainder, and increasing housing supplies it would seem that the possibility of life-long renting is reducing for many.
The Chief Executive of NAEA Propertymark, Mark Hayward, has noted that this year’s unprecedented heatwave over the summer led to an extremely busy August period, which was good news for sellers:
“This summer’s heatwave led to an unusually busy August, as house buyers and sellers opted to stay at home rather than heading abroad for their summer holidays…This boosted competition and meant sales to first-time buyers were down.”
Due to the warm summer, sales were clustered in August resulting in difficult conditions for first-time buyers and this small-scale summer phenomenon can be seen as a microcosm of the difficult conditions which first-time buyers endure when trying to purchase a property, with competition for affordable housing extremely prevalent.
With the supply of homes on the property market increasing, as well as increased support given to first-time buyers, we should continue to see first-time buyer transactions increasing due to this level of reduced competition and helping hand from the government. It is clear that there is a legitimate necessity for the housing stock in the UK to increase as the current demand outstrips supply, and with Theresa May just announcing that government caps on the amount councils can borrow to build new housing would be lifted, we should see more housing options entering the market in the upcoming months and years.
