During these Covid times if you are considering moving, no one would blame you for being a little conflicted. Headlines contradict themselves leaving it difficult to decipher fact from fiction. 

One minute you are wringing your hands in glee envisaging massive discounts on house prices then news breaks – estate agents are manic post lockdown. Determined to capitalise on the negative lockdown debate, you resolutely trawl the internet for the ‘forever home’ before putting forward an offer you can afford, on a house you can’t.

90% mortgages are withdrawn due to economic uncertainty which leads those desperate to get away from their in-laws, the flat share or the family home, trapped in a different kind of lockdown.  

As you fumble for water to swallow your mother in law’s latest over cooked offering, gravy arrives in the form of a stamp duty holiday leading to a flurry of activity. Emboldened lenders tentatively resurrect some pre-covid offerings and dry chicken is suddenly looking like a thing of the past.

Internally rationalising the saving buyers are making, sellers now confidently request a bullish listing price in the hope they will achieve the original asking price.  

Feeling quietly confident you book a last minute holiday but as your feet hit the airstair you are informed to self-isolate on your return. Resigned to your fate, you sit back, opening your complimentary nuts to headlines speculating on a potential Capital gains tax increase, mass unemployment and different ‘wavelengths’ to ride out. 

Nails worn down to the quick, Buyers and Sellers listen to Economists debate U and V shaped recoveries whilst others resort to mystic meg for reassurances.

Forecasters backtrack or stoically cling to their numbers. Some claim the buoyant market will wilt come Christmas and then blossom come Spring. Some say ‘winter is coming’ and will stay till Covid economic forces are vanquished by a vaccine.

It’s clear there is an impetus to move, what isn’t clear is what to offer or how much to list for.  

The sweeping generalisation is that houses are going strong while apartment sales vary, depending on location and outside space. Many in cities are looking for greener pastures which means certain property listings increase but stagnate, as a once sought after area is now perceived a concrete jungle. 

For those forward thinkers, this could be an affordable window of opportunity. Normality will eventually return to these areas as they reinstate their profile setting to the life and soul of the City. 

Now Covid is in our lives, confusion is rife. If you need help negotiating your way through the tide of headlines, selling or renting your home or unpicking varied estate agent valuations, I offer a service that will help to get you settled. For more information, please get in touch.