22
Dec
UK home sales up over 6% on same time a year ago
UK property transactions fell between October and November but were
up on an annual basis during November, HMRC says. The
taxman’s latest data on UK property transactions shows there
were 108,710 non-seasonally adjusted sales above £40,000 in
November. This was down just 0.36% on October but up 6.1% on the
same period last year. On a seasonally adjusted basis, HMRC said
transactions were up 0.6% monthly and 7.1% annually to 104,200
during November. Transactions slipped in Northern Ireland, falling
6.8% between October and November to 2,320, while England saw a
0.31% dip over the month to 92,070. Transactions were flat in
Scotland but up 1.3% in Wales over the month to 5,150. Brian
Murphy, head of lending at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said: “We
have now breached the million-mark in terms of the total number of
residential transaction figures so far in 2017, whether you take
the unadjusted figure or the adjusted figure. “Taking into
consideration political and economic headwinds this year, one would
suggest that these figures evidence a market that has largely held
steady due to the fact that many consumers still see property as a
reliable long-term investment. “Although we’re ending
2017 with a slightly higher interest rate than when we started 12
months ago, all in all one would suggest that we’re going
into 2018 on a solid footing: demand for homes in many regions is
still high, mortgages are still priced very competitively and we
now have the Chancellor’s Stamp Duty exemption for first-time
buyers which may see renewed activity at the entry level of the
market over the coming months. “Of course, we won’t
know the ‘big number’ for total transactions this year
until towards the end of January, as there is always a
month’s lag in the data. “However, for many in the
industry, despite reports of a significant cooling of activity in
London and the south-east over the last few months, the numbers
would suggest that, for now, the UK property market as a whole has
remained resilient in the face of challenging circumstances.