Because of the role I hold working as I do in the property industry and dealing with multiple towns across the south west of England and the Cotswolds, people often ask me for market predictions and what’s happening at present in the current market.
Often the market can be relatively consistent and flat, and we do still see certain trends and certain external factors playing a part in buyer and seller behaviour.
At present, we have seen a recent change in trend: at the lower end of the market, there is still lots of activity, with first time buyers jumping in since price adjustments down have been made by motivated sellers. As always, death and divorce continues to play a constant role for property changes of ownership too.
But what’s been noticeable has been a reducing of activity in the upper end of the market. Anything above £1 Million is not tending to move as much at present, and we have seen some properties price dropped to try to attract such buyers. Many think this is as a direct result of the impending October 30 Budget Statement due by the Chancellor. I would tend to agree with that, as much of the talk has been about potential increases to tax for those with more wealth, including property wealth. So people on the market casually beforehand, are now actively trying to encourage sales before being caught by potentially fairly painful increases in Capital Gains Tax (CGT).
While only speculation at this stage, there have been rumours of new Council Tax bands for higher value properties too, CGT for main residences for properties over a certain value, and so on.
Inheritance tax rises are also being speculated on, and often, as a property forms the largest asset in peoples’ Estates, tax planning around high value properties occurs – more so when those taxes may be changing for the higher – as at present they are rumoured to be.
As a result of these concerns, some higher value sellers are keen to find a buyer even at a discounted price to ensure taxes are (lawfully) avoided while there is still time, whereas of course some of those buyers looking to trade up to a grander property, are naturally the opposite – determined to sit it out and wait the results of the October 30 announcement.
What we are pretty confident of though, is that come 1 November, once certainty returns, people will get back on with their lives – and get moving – whether that’s at current prices, or perhaps at adjusted levels, depending how any changes impact properties.
About Simon Thomas
With over 20 years of prime property conveyancing experience, Simon oversees the firm as it’s CEO.
During his legal career, Simon has taken on complex conveyancing cases for high profile and ultra high net worth individuals, transacting prestigious properties in London’s most desirable locations including Kensington, Notting Hill, Marylebone and Mayfair. His tenacious execution on a single house purchase in the region of £20 million for a client in Knightsbridge was successfully completed in under one week.
Simon was once selected as one of the chosen few members of the Law Society’s prestigious Conveyancing & Land Law Committee at Chancery Lane, London. He was involved in regular committee meetings with the Heads of the Land Registry, the Law Society and other relevant organisation leads, to consult and advise on the very latest policies and challenges faced by law firms nationwide in the conveyancing sector.
In addition, Simon has regularly featured in The Sunday Times as the ‘Ask the Experts’ property solicitor. Simon has founded 4 separate Law Firms in the past twenty years, and successfully sold 2 of those to large National Institutions. His clear commitment and focus over the long term now rests with the ongoing success that is Montpellier Legal.
Contact Simon now: info@montpellier.legal | 01242 472200