Post Brexit – What will happen to Maidenhead Property Prices in the next 12 months?

Even the most sane person in Britain has to admit the Brexit vote will, in one shape or another, affect the UK Property market. Excluding central London which is another world, most commentators are saying prices will be affected by around 10%. So looking at the commentators’ thoughts in more detail, property values in Maidenhead will be 10% lower than they would have been if we hadn’t voted to leave the EU.

As the average value of a property in the Windsor and Maidenhead Council area is £490,000, this means property values are set to drop for the average Maidenhead property by £49,000 … batten down the hatches .. soup kitchens and mega recession here we come ..it’s going to get rough.

.. but before we all go into panic mode in Maidenhead .. the devil is always in the detail

Look at the phrase again, and I have highlighted the relevant part “Property values in Maidenhead will be 10% lower than they would have been if we hadn’t voted to leave the EU”

Property values today, according to the Land Registry are 16.12% higher than a year ago in the Windsor and Maidenhead Council area. The 12 months before that they rose by 11.79% and the 12 months before that, they rose by 8%. If we hadn’t voted to leave, I believe on these figures, we could have safely assumed Maidenhead House prices would have been 12% higher by the Summer of 2017.

… and that’s the point, we won’t see a house price crash in Maidenhead, it’s just that house prices in a years time will only be 2% higher than they are now (ie 12% less the 10% lower figure because of Brexit). Let’s look at the historic figures and how that compares to today’s figures for the Windsor and Maidenhead Council area and Maidenhead as a whole.

• Average Value of a property 20 years ago                       £  96,500
• Average Value of a property 10 years ago                       £284,500
• Average Value of a property 2 years ago                         £377,500
• Average Value of a property 1 year ago                           £422,000
• Average Value of a property today                                  £490,000
• Projected Value of a property in 12 months’ time            £500,000

Therefore, I believe that whilst prices are likely to remain flat for a while, we should still see a modest increase of £10k in the average value of a Maidenhead property in 12 months’ time.

That’s not to say Maidenhead property prices might not dip slightly in the run up to Christmas (in fact they always have done just about every year since the year 2000 and most of those were boom years) .. but in 12 months time this is my considered opinion of where Maidenhead property values will be.. and looking at the historic prices, even if I (and many other property market commentators) are wrong and they drop 10% from TODAY’S figure .. in the whole scheme of things, we have been through a Credit Crunch, Black Monday and 15% interest rates over the last 20 to 30 years .. and still Maidenhead house prices have always bounced back. 

Whilst the UK's vote for Brexit has created an uncertainty in the Maidenhead housing market, there is no need to panic and prospective buyers should merely use common sense about their purchases. I always say to people to be prudent and if you are taking out a mortgage, at some stage during the life of that mortgage, circumstances will be difficult. We won’t have a 2008 Credit crunch fire sale of properties because after the Mortgage Market Review, which took place in the Spring of 2013, mortgage borrowers are not as highly leveraged this time around.  As a result of this, with any luck there will not be too many distressed sales, which cause widespread price reductions.

For more thoughts on the Maidenhead Property market .. visit the Maidenhead Property Blog

Sandringham Road, Maidenhead - 2 Bedroom Bungalow - Offers real potential

It's time to get the calculator again! Demand for for projects like this have certainly dampened over the past 6 months as house price growth in Maidenhead has cooled over recent months. Saying that at the right price this level of projects still offer a good return.... Definitely worth giving Carson & Co. a call to find out some more details - it's on the market for £350K.

More pics and details below.....

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/41572263

85 days to find a buyer for your Maidenhead Property

I had a homeowner from Pinkneys Green email me the other day. She said she had been following my blog (the Maidenhead Property Market Blog) for a while and wanted to pick my brain on when is the best time of the year to sell a property. Trying to calculate the best time to put your Maidenhead property on the market can often seem something akin to witchcraft and, whilst I would agree that there are particular times of the year that can prove more productive than others, there are plenty of factors that need to be taken into consideration.

Even if you are putting your property on the market, you don’t know how long it will take to find a buyer - no crystal ball to help with that one. At the moment, the latest set of figures for all 28 estate agents in Maidenhead, show the average length of time it takes to find a buyer for any Maidenhead property is as follows ..

Detached                   86 days

Semi                           74 days

Terraced                    81 days

Flat                             91 days

Overall average        85 days

If we roll the clock back to January 2016, the overall average time it took to find a buyer (again using data from all of the 28 Maidenhead Estate Agents) was 119 days.

So, on the face of it, things have vastly improved over the last six months or so. Well, when I looked at the data going back to 2009, and every Spring since then, the average length of time it takes to sell a property drops between January and the Summer months, for it to rise on the run up to Christmas. For example ..

Winter 2009 - 194 days        Summer 2009  - 182 days

and in more recent times …

Winter 2013 - 158 days        Summer 2013  - 128 days

Winter 2014 - 124 days        Summer 2014  - 118 days

Winter 2015 - 111 days        Summer 2015  - 110 days

           

Coming back to the present, even if you placed your property on the market today in Maidenhead, if it takes you on average a little over twelve weeks to find a buyer, then you can expect solicitors and the chain to take an additional eight and twelve weeks after that, before you move. It comes down to personal choice as to when you place your property on the market. Children often affect the decision. On one side you might delay putting that for sale board in your front garden so you can move in the summer school holidays, but on the other side, you might want to move sooner to be in the catchment area of a preferred school, in plenty of time for the next academic year?

There are times of the year when it's better to sell, and times when waiting a little longer can pay off in the long run. In a nutshell, I would say this is the way of the seasons ..

Spring: Customarily there are more house-buyers as the Daffodils show themselves

Summer: Sellers may miss out on house-buyers being on holiday

Autumn: The enthusiasm for buying homes returns

Winter: Interest diminishes as festive period looms 

What this means to buyers and landlord investors is that they often pick up a bargain in later months of the year, as there is less competition from owner occupiers. So, whilst there are better months to achieve a quicker sale, the only piece of advice I can give to every home  owner and landlord in Maidenhead, is do the right thing for yourself, do your homework and buy (and sell) with both your head as well as your heart

For more thoughts on the Maidenhead Property Market – visit the Maidenhead Property Market Blog

Kimbolton, Ray Park Avenue - 2 Bed Apartment - Nice Investment Opportunity

Good Morning, just seen this great little apartment up for sale. It's on the market with Prospect for £350K and I think offers a low risk investment opportunity for anyone looking to start building their property empire. 2 bedroom flats in great condition are in demand and in this area will rent for over £1,100 PCM.... Give the guys at Prospect a call for more details.

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/39504527

Grenfell Road, Maidenhead - 2 Bed Terrace - Hot Spot For Tenants!

Good Evening everyone! Anything located in the Grenfell Road area is worth a look at for anyone investors in the Maidenhead area..... I really like this place because from the pics as it looks in good condition which is always great for a quick turnaround and back on the rental market. Although the Sales market may have be a bit quieter than what we are used to.... the rental market remains strong!

It's on the market with Connells for £400K. 

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/41481455

Rents in Maidenhead rise by 2.9% in the last year

I was reading the Sunday Papers recently and when getting to the financial pages it was announced UK inflation had increased to its highest level in a year. Inflation, as calculated by the Government’s Consumer Prices Index, rose by 0.3% over the last 12 months.  The report said it had risen to the those ‘heady’ levels by smaller falls in supermarket and petrol prices than a year ago. If you recall, in early 2015, we had deflation where prices were dropping!

So what does this mean for the Maidenhead property market ... especially the tenants?

Back in November, the Office of National Statistics stated average wages only rose by 1.8% year on year, so when adjusted for inflation, Maidenhead people are 1.5% better off in ‘real’ terms.   Great news for homeowners, as their mortgage rates are at their lowest ever levels and their spending power is increasing, but the news is not so good for tenants.

The average rent that Maidenhead tenants have to pay for their Private Rental Properties in Maidenhead (i.e. not housing association or council tenants) rose by 2.9% throughout 2015, eating into most of the growth.  2015 wasn’t a one off either.  In 2014, rents in Maidenhead rose by 2.2% (where salaries only rose by only 0.2%) However, it’s not all bad news for Maidenhead tenants, because in 2013 rents rose by 1.8%, (but salaries rose by 2.2%).

… and it must be noted that the private rents Maidenhead tenants have had to pay for Maidenhead property since 2005 are only 20.0% higher, not even keeping up with inflation, which over the same time frame, rose at 27.8% (although salaries were only 22.3% higher over the same time period)

More and more, talking to 20 and 30 somethings who rent – it’s a choice.  Gone are the days where owning your own property was a guaranteed path to wealth, affluence and prosperity.    I know keep mentioning Europe, but some of the highest levels of home ownership are in Romania at 96.1%, Hungary at 88.2% and Latvia at 80.9% (none of them European economic dynamos) and even West European countries like Spain at 78.8% and Greece at 74% (and we know both of those countries are on their knees, riddled with national debt and massive youth unemployment).

At the other end of the scale, whilst we in the UK stand at 64.8% homeownership, in Europe’s powerhouses, only 52.5% of Germans own a home and only 44% of Swiss people are homeowners.  Looks like eating chocolate, sauerkraut, renting and good economic performance go hand in hand.  Yet, joking aside, home ownership has not always been the rule in the UK.   In 1918, only 23% of people were homeowners, with no council housing, meaning in fact, 77% were tenants.

Tenants have choice, flexibility to move, they don’t have massive bills when the boiler blows up, it’s a choice.  Maidenhead rents are growing, but not as much as incomes. To buy or not to buy is an enormously difficult decision.   For a while buying a Maidenhead home is a dream for the majority of the 20 and 30 something’s of Maidenhead have, it might not leave them better off in the long run and it isn’t necessarily the best option for everyone.  That is why, demand for renting is only going in one direction – upwards.

**Investment Opportunity** - Gerrards Cross - New Build 1 Bed Apartment

I've just become aware of an opportunity to purchase a One Bedroom New Build apartment in the centre of Gerrards Cross.... not yet released to the market! If this could be of interest to you please feel free to get in touch (duncan@primequarters.co.uk or 07786 982997)