Don’t price your home too high

Recent data has highlighted the negative impact of pricing your home too high.
It can be tempting to put your property up for a high price, with a view to reducing it further down the line. For first-time buyers, securing one of the best mortgage deals for first-time buyers early in the process can also play a crucial role in ensuring a smooth transaction, giving you more flexibility when negotiating prices. But the reality is, cutting the asking price of a property comes at a cost. Analysis of sales over the last five years has shown that properties that have had a price reduction are twice as likely to have the transaction fall through and take three times as long to sell than homes that have not been discounted.

If you do need to reduce the price, data suggest it is better to do so sooner rather than later. Nearly 60% of homes that cut the asking price within two to four weeks manage to ultimately sell. However, fewer than 53% of homes sell if they are reduced after eight weeks of going on the market.

What are buyers looking for?

A survey of homebuyers and movers has offered an insight into what the nation wants from the new Labour government.

Access to longer mortgages

A third of respondents said they want better access to long-term fixed mortgages*. Despite this, only 8% would be prepared to take out a 10-year fixed deal now – likely due to high mortgage rates at the moment.

Adjusting to higher rates

The report indicated that buyers are generally adapting to the higher mortgage rates, with 37% saying their buying plans were unchanged – up from 29% in February.

Contrary to government plans

Many of the desires expressed in the survey were not in line with government’s plans. The Freedom to Buy initiative is set to be introduced soon, but only 26% of respondents wanted help for first-time buyers.
Iwona Hovenko at Bloomberg Intelligence observed, “Almost half of respondents in our survey seek a cut in Stamp Duty from the government, but we don’t see this as likely in the near term. The desire was strongest among movers and buyers in Southern England, due to disproportionately high taxes on pricier homes.

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Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage