Can We Really Complain About Things?
The value of private housing stocking has risen by 84% or £1.9 trillions in the last 10 years with the gap between north and south of the country decreasing year on year, can we really complain if we get the odd reality check? With 8 months of stalling prices we are almost back to 2007 price levels and the buy to rent boom seems to be over but is it time to press the panic button?
Property has long been seen as the safest investment and will continue to do so for the right property even if property values are not spiraling up every year like the 2001 to 2007 period. The insustainable growth of this period has been replaced by austerity and prudence, apart from the people who got caught out in 2007 or lost their jobs since then the country really isnt in a very different situation. If property prices have fallen then for those buying property it has become a lot more affordable if mortgage finance is available. There isnt really a problem with the market which is afterall led by demand (which is down) funded by borrowing (heavily regulated after a period of freedom) bought by us who find the prices of most of the other things we buy in the shops rising month on month. The hysteria we have seen, especially recently has been all about people using the property market as the sole indicator of the nations finances (since peoples houses usually form a major part of their savings) and everytime they go down we have been in a panic. This has resulted in billions of quantitive easing which we will be paying for for years, draconian banking changes which have stifled the mortgage market and spending money or loads of property related schemes which have cost the country billions.
The value of property is based on its market value, but unless we are selling, or selling and then not buying should we really be panicking?
See what your property is worth, and what the properties are worth around it House Price Spy