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Dip in housing market confidence in November

Christina Hoghton
Written By:
Christina Hoghton
Posted:
Updated:
30/11/2020

Homeowners are becoming less confident about their home’s value this year, but remain optimistic about property prices over the 12 months ahead

Confidence in the housing market dipped slightly last month, according to Halifax.

The lender found that fewer households across the UK thought the value of their home had increased in November compared to the previous month.

Just 14% of those asked in November felt the value of their home rose over the last month, compared to 17% in both September and October. However, this does remain significantly above the low of 4% recorded during the first national lockdown in May.

And overall, more homeowners remain confident that their house will be worth more in 12 months’ time than those who think it will be worth less.

Just over a quarter (27%) of households believe the value of their home will have increased by this time next year, compared to just 16% back in May.

One in five people (18%) now think the value of their property will be lower in 12 months’ time, down from a peak of around one third (34%) of respondents in May.

Russell Galley, managing director of Halifax, said: “UK households remain broadly confident in the strength of the property market. The perceived rate of house price growth weakened slightly during November but is nonetheless above average and a noticeable reversal from the period of negative sentiment we saw between April through to August.

“People also remain cautiously optimistic that property prices across the country will be higher in 12 months’ time. However, expectations softened from October, and remain subdued by historical standards. This is unlikely to change significantly while the macroeconomic landscape remains uncertain, with most housing market experts predicting greater downward pressure on house prices as we move into 2021.”