142 First Time Buyers in Rutland bought their first home in 2017

A little bit of good news this week on the Rutland Property Market, as recently released data shows that the number of first time buyers taking out their first mortgage in 2017 increased more than in any other year since the global financial crisis in 2009.

The data shows there were 142 first time buyers in Rutland, the largest number since 2006.

However, the buy-to-let investment in Rutland was subdued, with only 29 buy-to-let properties being purchased with a mortgage. However, I must stress, whilst there is no hard and fast data on the total numbers of landlords investing in buy-to-let, as HM Treasury believes only 30% to 40% of buy-to-let property is bought with a mortgage. This means there would have been further cash only buy-to-let purchases, it’s just that the data isn’t available at such a granular level.

In terms of the level of mortgage debt in Rutland, there has been a steady rise in borrowing over the last few years.  This is pleasing as new mortgage debt is created by first time buyers, buy-to-let landlords and home movers themselves, and that is being roughly equalled by the amount being paid off with mature mortgaged homeowners in their 50’s and 60’s finally paying off their mortgage.

 

So, what does all this mean for the Rutland Property Market?  Well, the stats' paint a picture, but they don’t inform us of the whole story.

The upper end of the Rutland property market has been weighed down by the indecision around the Brexit negotiations and rise in stamp duty in 2014, which made it considerably more expensive to buy a home costing more than £1m.





The middle part of the Rutland property market has been affected by issues of mortgage affordability and lack of good properties to buy, as selling prices have reached the limit of what buyers can afford under existing mortgage regulations.
 

The lower to middle market was hit by tax changes for buy-to-let landlords, although this has been offset by the increase in first time buyers.
 

If you are in the market and selling now and want to ensure you get your property sold, the bottom line is you have to be 100% realistic with your pricing from day one and you might not get as much as you did say a year ago (but the one you want to buy will be less – swings and roundabouts?). I know it’s not comfortable hearing that your home isn’t worth as much as you thought, but buyers are now unbelievably discerning.

 

So, if you are thinking of selling your property in the coming months, don’t ask the agent out a few days before you want to put the property on the market, get them out now and ask them what you need to do to ensure you get maximum value in the shortest possible time. I, like most agents, will freely give that advice to you at no cost or commitment to you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

David Crooke, 01572 725 825