Half of homes in Great Britain taking longer to sell than last year amid mortgage volatility
Summary
Half of homes in Great Britain are taking longer to sell compared to last year because uncertain mortgage costs have made buyers cautious. The ongoing Iran war has caused mortgage rates to rise and lenders to pull deals, affecting how quickly houses sell in different areas.Key Facts
- Homes in 180 out of 363 local authorities in England, Scotland, and Wales are selling slower than last year.
- The average time to sell a home nationally remains about 42 days, but some regions are much slower or faster.
- Scotland has the fastest home sales, with Falkirk averaging 11 days to sell a home.
- Some areas, including Melton, Westminster, and Teignbridge, have average sale times over two months.
- Mortgage rates rose from 4.83% before the Iran war to about 5.61% recently, peaking near 6% in April.
- The Iran war created uncertainty, causing lenders to pull mortgage deals and increasing loan costs.
- Higher energy costs pushed UK inflation from 2.6% in June to 2.9% in July, influencing expectations for interest rate rises.
- The Bank of England’s base interest rate is currently 3.75%, with markets expecting two more increases by the end of next year.
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