Sheffield Property Market May 2021

Struggling to close the deal on that perfect house you’ve spotted online? Well you’re not alone!

Whether you’ve been looking to secure your first ever home, or simply wanting to upgrade on your current house, the housing market has hit a whole new level of activity in 2021 in Sheffield.

So much so, it’s the fastest ever selling market Rightmove has measured since it’s records began. 

So just why has the housing market gone so crazy during COVID times? 

Well, there’s a few different reasons we can look at.

• The Supply is DOWN! To coincide with the huge demand for houses, the perfect storm of supply being down, seems to be one of the key factors. According to Zoopla, buyer demand is 80% higher than the long-run average, and in contrast - the supply of homes listed on the market has fallen by 13%, compared with the same period of 2020.

• Stamp Duty - Back in March the government extended the stamp duty relief until the 30th September 2021, up to the purchase price of £250,000. So - what does this mean? It’s only useful if you’re a first time buyer, but if you are, it could instantly shave off anywhere from £1,500 to £15,000 from the buying costs.

• 95% Mortgages - In April the government announced a 95% mortgage guarantee scheme, in order to assist people to have easier access to a mortgage with a much smaller deposit. This has certainly widened the pool of people able to move, and certainly ramped up the quantity of people chasing the same properties, thus driving the competition up.  

With all the above mentioned, it’s hard to know if and when the market will begin to slow down again. But with Rightmove reporting 23% of houses listed in March selling within ONE week - The market will still seemingly heavily favour sellers, certainly in the immediate future.