As we proceed into 2025, UK property information continues to assert 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 just 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 anticipated 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 house was listed on the market at £366,189 throughout January – a 1.7% improve of £5,992 and the largest spurt in costs to begin any new yr since 2020.
Elevated confidence on the a part of potential consumers might assist to clarify this renewed buoyancy available in the market. As rates of interest have already fallen to a point, consumers look 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 Might of final yr.
15m houses gained £7,600 in worth over 2024
The New 12 months’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 in the course of the course of final yr.
Not all properties fared so nicely, 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 price of borrowing had diminished buying energy.
The general impression on costs throughout all 30 million houses was calculated as a median improve 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 positive aspects – of a median £4,400 – had been seen within the northwest.
The most recent 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. Particularly, it argued towards the proposals to:
- restrict to 1 month the quantity of hire landlords might cost tenants upfront;
- limit the power of landlords to repossess student-let property;
- charges raised from landlords getting used to fund the proposed new personal rented sector Ombudsman; and
- the creation of a register of landlords and the upkeep of a landlord’s database.
Propertymark is worried that whereas the amendments would possibly seem to favour tenants, within the longer run the disincentives for landlords may lead to fewer and dearer properties within the personal rented sector.
Petition calls for EPC equality for personal rental properties
A narrative in Landlord At this time final month described a petition to the Home of Commons by a non-public sector landlord calling for the strict vitality effectivity necessities for rental houses to be utilized to all sorts of housing – regardless of the tenure.
The petitioner is making his bid following affirmation from Ed Miliband the Power Secretary that each one houses within the personal rented sector might want to have an Power Efficiency Certificates (EPC) ranking of C – or higher – by the yr 2030.
