Most of the non-essential parts of the British economy have been put on hold by the coronavirus lockdown and the housing market, core as it may seem to many of our lives, is no exception.

With moving during the lockdown period being heavily discouraged by the government and many lenders now refusing to lend to those with anything less than a 40% deposit, property website Zoopla reckons that the number of houses sold in UK will fall by at least 60% in the next few months.

There are several factors behind the move – the shutdown has reduced banks’ capacity to process loans, surveyors are unable to value properties as easily and estate agents can’t show people around homes.

On top of that, it’s hard to value a house when transactions have dried up and there are no comparable deals going through, and it’s hard to write loans when job security across almost all industries and seniority levels is suddenly in question.

So for now, the property market is effectively frozen. Price data will be virtually meaningless in the coming months, as pretty much the only deals being done right now will be between those who are forced to sell and those who are cash buyers. 

So what happens when the lockdown is over? A lot depends on the state of the economy, and also the level of restrictions on movement that remain. On that front, estate agents argue that there will be plenty of pent-up demand from both buyers and sellers, given that mortgage approvals in February hit their highest level since 2014.

Cheap funding available to banks from the Bank of England should mean the mortgage market remains open and rates stay low once the worst of the crisis is past, even if the riskiest loans are no longer on offer. But this might be wishful thinking. House prices are indeed largely dictated by the price and availability of credit.

Meanwhile, a key source of demand in some areas, mini-Airbnb empires in tourist hotspots, will also suffer as holiday landlords who were burned during the lockdown sell out.

In the longer run, interest rates are unlikely to rise because the Bank of England will be forced to hold them down, given soaring government borrowing. In time that could result in inflation, which would make property appealing as a “real asset”. 

But that may take time, we expect house prices to fall by just 3% this year, but there are many risks that could undermine this forecast, a larger-than-hoped rise in unemployment being the key one.

That said, if you are keen to move, then look to the shires.

In relative terms at least, if there is any wider shift to working from home more regularly, you’d expect country properties to outperform city ones, while towns and villages once deemed to be on the fringes of commuting range of London and other big cities might also see a benefit.

Today’s National Day  

NATIONAL YOGA DAY!

PUBLISHERS NOTICE  

Dear Streetwise Customer 

I hope that you and your family are well. 

I don’t have to tell you that the Coronavirus outbreak has changed everything, and nowhere more so than in the world of sports betting. With almost all our regular ‘go to’ profit makers like European football, horse racing and golf on hold, you might be excused for thinking that the opportunity to make a lucrative extra income from sports betting was gone – at least for now. 

That’s what we thought until we heard from a guy called Craig Russell and how
he was… 

Making an extra £150-£250 a week exploiting the ‘invisible’ betting opportunities exposed by the Coronavirus mayhem.

 You see Craig isn’t your typical sports bettor. Long before anyone had heard of coronavirus, he was shunning the sort of events most of us bet on in favour of little-known sports, events and fixtures taking place in obscure locations. 

Why did he concentrate on those? 

Because he figured that the less ‘pro’s’  there  were  looking  at  these  obscure markets, and the more time he spent studying them, the greater edge he’d have over the competition. 

Obvious when you think about it. 

So why this message? 

Because it seems like now is the perfect time to bring this to a wider audience…but not much wider! 

You see, in conjunction with Craig we’ve put together a totally unique service which is tailor-made for the times we find ourselves in. But there will only be 100 places available. Ever.

For full details on what’s involved and why the limit, take a LOOK NOW.If an extra couple of hundred pounds tax-free income would be worthwhile to you right now, I’d urge you to get in touch without delay. These places are really going to go fast.  

  For full details CLICK HERE

  Very Best Wishes, 

  John Harrison
  Streetwise Publications 

  P.S   Almost forgot…you can get started with this for just £9.95.  I’m pretty sure that makes it our cheapest service ever. Why? Well take a look now  and all will be revealed. 

www.streetwisenews.com/LP