A website has reported a surge in homes being listed for sale in the lead-up to the Easter holidays.
Rightmove, the property website, revealed that the Thursday before the Easter bank holiday weekend saw the highest number of new home-sellers listing their properties so far this year.
The same day, March 28, 2024, also marked the third largest day for new property listings since August 2020. The only days with more properties listed in one day were Boxing Day in 2022 and 2023, according to Rightmove.
On March 28, there was a 45 percent increase in homes added to Rightmove compared to the previous Thursday.
Tim Bannister, a property expert at Rightmove, said: “A huge number of new sellers came to market as we all geared up for the Easter break, all hoping to capture the attention of those buyers using the long weekend to home hunt alongside their Easter egg hunts.”
He added: “It’s still a price-sensitive market, so, while the uptick in activity we’ve seen over the past few months is a positive sign, sellers still need to heed the advice from their agent on pricing competitively to help secure a successful sale.”
Previously, two- and five-year fixed-rate mortgages had risen above six percent due to economic instability, but a decrease in inflation has raised hopes of a cut in the Bank of England base rate.
The financial website, Moneyfacts, reported on Thursday that the average rate for a two-year fixed mortgage stands at 5.81 percent, a slight increase from Wednesday’s 5.80 percent.
The five-year fixed rate remained stable at 5.39 percent.
This week, Nationwide Building Society reported a 0.2 percent monthly decrease in the average UK house price for March, although there are indications of increased activity.
Bank of England figures revealed this week that the number of mortgage approvals rose to a record high in February, since the mini-budget delivered under former prime minister Liz Truss.
Some 60,383 mortgages were approved for house purchase, marking the highest figure since September 2022 when 65,349 deals were sanctioned.
Nathan Emerson, the CEO of property professional group Propertymark, commented: “It’s encouraging to now see people once again finding the confidence and affordability to power their next move.”
In a survey conducted by property company Savills amongst 1,200 home-movers on their client database, it was found that 15 percent have expanded their budgets.
When purchasing a home, size (65 percent) and room count (54 percent) were deemed most important.
These proportions have seen an increase over the previous two years, rising from 52 percent and 45 percent respectively.
Most people looking to move houses, about 79 percent, say that an upcoming general election won’t change their plans. But there are a few, eight percent, who feel less sure about moving because of it.
Lucian Cook from Savills, who knows a lot about houses, shared: “With mortgage markets steadily improving, the outlook for the housing market has certainly improved and has entered the first stages of recovery.”
