Weather affects January housing market

Published on

The snow and ice which dominated January’s news also had a negative affect on the housing market, according to the latest Agency Express Property Activity Index.

The number of houses sold in January was 18.0% less than those sold in December and 9.8% down on January 2009. Compared to 2007 and 2008 the picture looks gloomy with house sales being down 54.2% and 52.9% respectively.

In previous years, January has seen a significant uplift in the amount of houses sold compared to the traditionally quiet December. But, according to Agency Express, the combination of the ending of the Stamp Duty holiday at the end of December and the bad weather experienced at the start of January means that it has been the worst January for house sales for four years.

However, there were some more positive signs in various regions. The North East saw house sales grow by 12.5%, with Wales seeing an increase of 6.0% and Central England experienced a 1.4% uplift. And there were five cities that saw positive monthly sales growth – Bristol (up 75.0%), Birmingham (68.0%), Cardiff (34.4%), Southampton (12.5%) and Newcastle (3.1%).

Stephen Watson, managing director, Agency Express, said: “Without doubt

Latest POLL

COMMENT ON MORTGAGE SOUP

We want to hear from you!
Leave a comment and get the conversation started.
You need to register to post, so please login or sign up below.

Latest articles

Square 1 Media announces May Mortgage Market Debate

Square 1 Media is to hold its next Mortgage Market Debate on Wednesday, 21 May,...

Coventry BS maintains status as one of the best workplaces

Coventry Building Society has been named one of Great Place to Work's UK’s Best...

Atom bank breaks Near Prime record

Atom bank has reported another record-breaking month for Near Prime activity. Over the course of...

Berkeley Alexander appoints new BDM

General insurance provider Berkeley Alexander has announced the appointment of Grant Robinson as a...

Other news

Lenders must step up on high LTV products

Things are on the up for borrowers with a smaller deposit. The financial information...

Square 1 Media announces May Mortgage Market Debate

Square 1 Media is to hold its next Mortgage Market Debate on Wednesday, 21 May,...

Coventry BS maintains status as one of the best workplaces

Coventry Building Society has been named one of Great Place to Work's UK’s Best...