Sheffield Housing Market Bulletin(extract) – by Sheffield City Council
Introduction
This gives an overview of Sheffield’s housing market during the October – December 2008 quarter, highlighting any major changes and how these relate to national trends. All figures quoted in this bulletin refer to Sheffield unless otherwise stated. What’s been in the papers? This section describes some of the main stories reported in the media about the housing market and other related issues during the last quarter. The 4 major news stories have remained the same since the previous quarter. These are: Reductions in house prices – House prices have continued to fall and these articles continue to dominate press attention. This downturn has now been recognised as global. There are some reports that the housing market has shown slight improvement with the decrease in house prices slowing down as interest rates have lowered.
Repossessions – The cost of living and increased redundancies have led to increased levels of repossessions as well as predictions that the number of people who will lose their homes will increase. There are also reports that houses are standing empty despite the lack of affordable housing. In turn the number of people who have suffered repossession has led to an alleged shortage of social housing and also calls for the sale of council houses to be scrapped in order to slow down the housing crisis.
Recession – The current downturn in the economic climate has threatened the prosperity of several banks which has led to more cautious mortgage lending with many households being refused mortgages or offered mortgage deals that are unaffordable and require larger deposits. Also, banks are reported as being slow to pass on lower interest rate which is leading to low numbers of first time buyers in the market. On the other hand mortgages are being repaid at the fastest rate for 40 years demonstrating that those who can afford to respond have decided that it is wise to get out of
the mortgage market as quickly as possible. Responses – Government initiatives to aid the slump in the housing market have included lowering interest rates and introducing a two-year holiday from paying interest on mortgages for families who are struggling to make repayments. This payment holiday is being offered by 8 of the largest lenders in the country. There have also been renewed warnings about interest-only mortgages, aiming to educate people about the dangers of delaying acquiring equity. In addition, the advent of shared equity schemes aim to create an affordable step between social rented to home ownership. However, there are increasing reports that Home Improvements Packs have contributed to the housing market slump. For the full 6 page report please go to the RLS web page at www.sheffield.gov.uk/rls where there is a link to the Council document. For further information about this housing market bulletin, please contact the Housing Strategy and Policy team on 0114 273 6396, or Jim Uttley at james.uttley@sheffield.gov.uk
Lettings, where is the market now and where is it going?
Rick Flay, Director of Belvoir! Sheffield looks at the market now and crystal ball gazes into the months ahead. ‘Firstly, we will take a look at where we are now, is it a good time to rent, is it a good time to buy more or sell what you have. Then we will focus on where the market is heading’
The Market Now
Since the ‘credit crunch’ became the most overused phrase in the English Language there have been some significant shifts in the lettings market in Sheffield. Initially when the banks started going bust, fear and panic was pretty widespread, we had a fairly quiet November, busier than the year before but not at the same stellar levels as other months in 2008. However December, January and February have been amazing. Tenant enquiry in January was the same as July and August last year combined. This suggests that the number of people wanting to rent is i
