New figures from the Land Registry show house prices dropping 1.3% per year
In recent figures released by the Land Registry, house prices in England and Wales are shown to have fallen by 1.3% in 2011, comparable with the same period in 2010, with the North East bearing the brunt of the biggest drop in house prices throughout the area.
Only London has managed to avoid this pattern of decline, with a rise of 2.8%, possibly because of rising interest in the area from international investors and domestic buyers who still see the capital as the best place to set up a property as a wise investment.
With house prices continuously on the decline for the past few years, there are two strong arguments for whether to buy now or wait for property prices to begin to rise again. For first time buyers, the time has never been better to push forward a quick sale on a property, as they are currently exempt from stamp duty due to the stamp duty holiday due to end in March. Experts predict this will boost the number of people buying homes in the next month or so, due to the tremendous savings first time buyers will be making on properties by avoiding stamp duty.
Another reason why now is a good time to buy is that eventually house prices will begin to rise again and while they are falling it is possible to get a cheap deal on a property that will have a far higher value by the time the mortgage on it matures. This makes house buying a safer investment for the moment, with a much stronger chance of a good return in the future.
The argument for waiting to buy says that while house prices are still falling they may have a long way to go and waiting until they start to rise again gives the buyer the best chance of getting the lower rate and still seeing their investment pay off with a huge rise in the value of the property over the repayment term. The problem with waiting too long is that current deals may pass the borrower by when in comes to mortgages, and should house prices rise quickly they may miss out on an incredibly low price for a property that could double in value over a couple of decades.
Interest in buying is on the increase, which may see property prices start to rise this year, but buyers should be careful to do their research and make sure they are choosing the best option for their situation before committing to a property.
Article by: Steve Clements, Senior Mortgage Consultant at Contractor Mortgages Made Easy
Media Contact: Raman Kaur, Public Relations Manager.
Tel: 0844 44 88 800
Email: media@contractormortgagesuk.com
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