[1]Andy Sommerville, director of Search Acumen [2], comments:
“Housebuilding will be firmly at the top of the agenda for the Housing Minister in the coming months as consumer demand continues to outweigh constricted property supply. Given the dearth of new affordable properties coming on to the market, it will be surprising if this issue is not addressed in the upcoming Autumn Statement.
“Residential market voices were fairly subdued coming in to October as the market picks up from the lull of brexit, yet there is a collective feeling across the sector of an upturn as we enter 2017. On a regional level, London continues to suffer from sluggish activity, with house prices dropping for the eighth consecutive month, yet modest increases in sales and enquiries were seen elsewhere in the country.
“This week’s news of a Trump presidency is likely to rustle things up on a national and global level and marks another event in what has been an unexpected year. While economic uncertainty can have a negative impact on the housing market, as with Brexit, it’s far too early to tell what the long-term implications might be. In the short-term, market expectations are quietly confident and suggest a rise in transaction numbers rather than a fall.”