The psychology of the high street shops, and property sales is quite an interesting subject matter. Often, when others flock, we follow. When discounts at our favourite store are available, we often buy what we might not otherwise have bought. When do retailers do this? When the retail market is weaker, and demand is down. Yet, when the property market is weak, few of us have the inclination to take advantage.
As for the high street, it’s fair to say, that the UK has fully embraced the American export that is Black Friday. A marketing slur, designed to encourage us to spend when the shops would otherwise be deserted, and when shop revenues would typically be down before the Christmas rush. In the same vein, the January sales (or even boxing day sales!) are of course there to entice us back into the shops, when it’s the least probable past time one might think of, only the day after Christmas. In other words, these marketing campaigns draw us in, when the market is down.
So how effective are these these marketing ploys at overcoming a sluggish market? In 2019, UK consumers spent £2.53bn during black Friday, which went up from £2.2bn in 2018. Clearly, our retailing friends over the pond were onto something, and this sales snowball is catching on here, with the shops and high streets during Black Friday, absolutely packed whilst doing a rather good job at parting us from our pennies.
We have in recent years, seen a remarkably similar cycle in the housing market. Property prices in London have remained fairly flat for around 4 years now, and in some cases, prices have even fallen a little. Unlike the market high of 2014, where properties would often change hand significantly above the asking prices, costing buyers tens of thousands of pounds more. Nowadays, it’s not uncommon for buyer to save thousands of pounds off the asking prices.
When compared to the seemingly trivial opportunity to save £20 on a vacuum cleaner during Black Friday, the numbers do start to get rather interesting with even a small discount, when applied to buying a property purchase.
Yet despite the London property sale likely to be in it’s eleventh hour, unlike Black Friday, many would-be buyers might feel concerned about whether now is the right time to be buying, with a multitude of reasonings given the current economic climate. Delaying such a big decision could cost dearly, exaggerated further by a dwindling pipeline of new homes due to delayed construction starts as a result of COBID-19.
In truth, there is rarely a perfect time for any of life’s major events, and we cannot profess to predict the future. However, if you consider London property prices over the last 50 years, the current stamp duty relief approved by the chancellor, and an expiring Help to Buy loan from the government. Our estimations make the current climate and timing, in our opinion, the buying opportunity of a generation.
Thinking of buying? Check out our new homes or follow us at Chameleongroup_ for top tips on the market or to say hello to one of our accomplished team.
