London Has Peaked

ProDave

Re "average selling prices"

Up here only small houses are selling, but selling for much the same as they have in recent years. but larger houses are not selling, or taking a very long time to sell.

So if only the smaller houses are selling it will make the "average" price lower, even though they have not actually dropped in value at all.

wotsthat

Crashy_Time wrote: »

I`m not disputing sales price averages, although I`m sure they can be massaged upwards when it suits the agenda, I am just saying that lower volumes mean not everyone can get the "average" price for their house, it means many won`t sell at all. The two stats are separate things, one feels good for circus entertainers like you, while the other dictates the actual chances of selling your house to move for work etc.

When you buy a house it's the amount of stuff in your back pocket you need to part with that matters.

The government don't want people to move house for any reason which is why volumes are down. Well I assume that's what they want as they keep using taxes as a disincentive to move. I could sell and buy back the same value of shares for a fraction of the tax that I'd need to pay to sell and buy back the same house.

I bet builders doing extensions aren't complaining though.

System

ProDave wrote: »

Re "average selling prices"

Up here only small houses are selling, but selling for much the same as they have in recent years. but larger houses are not selling, or taking a very long time to sell.

So if only the smaller houses are selling it will make the "average" price lower, even though they have not actually dropped in value at all.

That's not how it works. Those.clever boffins thought of that. You should research the methodology of your favourite index.

Thrugelmir

AFF8879 wrote: »

Yet, I'm bombarded with estate agent requests begging me to sell, one even speculatively knocked at my door the other week :huh:

Without sales they generate no income. Offices are expensive to staff and maintain.

westernpromise

Sales volumes are down because nobody's selling. Nobody is selling because stamp duty. It's not like estate agents have loads of sellers and no buyers. They've got no sellers. Hence the constant leafleting to ensure that if you do sell, you think about calling them as opposed to someone else.

Anyone selling is either trading up, in which case the stamp duty is crippling, or trading down, in which case the stamp duty consumes much of the equity you thought to liberate. Those trading sideways find they are hit with a tax of hundreds of per cent of the transaction costs. Landlords aren't selling unless they have to because they face crippling costs to re-enter.

The housing market is completely, utterly and catastrophically fukced by this, IMO.

GreatApe

westernpromise wrote: »

Sales volumes are down because nobody's selling. Nobody is selling because stamp duty. It's not like estate agents have loads of sellers and no buyers. They've got no sellers. Hence the constant leafleting to ensure that if you do sell, you think about calling them as opposed to someone else.

Anyone selling is either trading up, in which case the stamp duty is crippling, or trading down, in which case the stamp duty consumes much of the equity you thought to liberate. Those trading sideways find they are hit with a tax of hundreds of per cent of the transaction costs. Landlords aren't selling unless they have to because they face crippling costs to re-enter.

The housing market is completely, utterly and catastrophically fukced by this, IMO.

what are they down by? 30%?

perhaps its worse than that as there will be a number of landlords moving from sole trader to company route adding some 'virtual' transactions thus the actual transactions are even lower than the headline stats.

westernpromise

All stamp duty rates should be reduced by 90%. At that level SDLT would probably raise some actual money.

Jack_Johnson_the_acorn

BUMP

Has London peaked yet?

theEnd

There are 2 properties near me that have been on for sale for over a year.

These are fairly prime starter/btl flats is SW London. Originally on for around £400k (which was high), but now in the low £300k and no one interested.