Second Coronavirus Lockdown
So, as of Thursday, there will be a second lockdown…
What will this mean for the housing market?
Well, as a start, the housing market will remain open, which is superb news for buyers, sellers, conveyancers, solicitors, mortgage providers, etc!
However, this could of course change as time goes on…
For those that are midway through their property purchase or sale, this will obviously come as a relief.
I believe that a second coronavirus lockdown could well reaffirm certain people’s opinions and feelings on wanting to move out of their city centre flat and into a more countrified or rural style of living.
If you are thinking along these lines, then I would strongly advise that you rent before you buy and take the plunge.
Living in a rural location, as well as working from home, can take a lot of time to adjust to…
That is, if you even adjust to it at all!
“Another aspect to consider is will mortgage lenders’ confidence drop if millions of people are unable to keep up with their mortgage payments?”
I have read and heard about numerous horror stories of people moving out of London to what they thought was their perfect countryside dream, only for one month later to realise how much they missed the buzz of the city centre for so many reasons.
Another thing to be mindful of with another lockdown imminently present is that certain people, as awful as it is, will likely lose their jobs and will it very difficult to keep up with their mortgage payments.
There are a lot of conveyancers, surveyors and solicitors that are already bogged down (which is a positive thing, mind you!) with a whole heap of transactions and I believe that many home buyers who are hoping to beat that March 31st deadline for stamp duty, may well end up missing out…
Another aspect to consider is will mortgage lenders’ confidence drop if millions of people are unable to keep up with their mortgage payments?
On a positive note, mortgage interest rates are still incredibly low and they do not look like they will be rising dramatically over the short term…
What will happen to house prices…?
It depends on levels of employment/ people having to sell their home due to the three D’s - death/ debt/ divorce and whether the seller is receiving what they feel is acceptable whether the buyer is paying what they feel is acceptable, too…
Do you think that the second lockdown will make you reassess your current living situation?