Everyone needs housing, and local estate agents are available throughout the year to help homeowners sell and buyers search through listings to find their next house.
Despite being largely an evergreen market, there are certain points of the year where there is a jump in demand, with one of the biggest of these being the start of Autumn.
However, even by September’s typically busier standards, average property prices increased at a higher rate than usual according to Rightmove’s House Price Index, suggesting that the Autumn rush might have started earlier this year.
Part of the reason for this is that summer was relatively subdued and absent of the chaos found in the spring and summer, there is enough stability for buyers to commit in a way they have not felt they can over the past year.
Mortgage rates are trending downward, which usually correlates with increased buying behaviour, inflation has gone down and with that earnings have risen.
There are a lot of positive signs on the horizon in terms of more houses becoming available, helping to keep supply more in line with demand and avoid oscillating prices.
However, there are some signs of caution, and there is the potential for the pendulum to swing the other way and cause house prices and demand to fall rather than rise depending on certain events.
The average time to find a buyer has increased to two full months, something that is concerning as a big reason why the Autumn market is so busy is that buyers want to close a sale and move in before the disruptive Christmas season.
Price still matters, as whilst mortgage rates are lower, they are still double the average rates seen in 2021, and announcements made in the Autumn Statement could affect different parts of the sector somewhat dramatically.
