Property market during rest of 2024

I think the rest of this year will see the market slowly recover, but the big rush will not come until ealy 2025. Whilst things have picked up a little, we are far from at normal business levels, but it is encouraging that the market is starting to gather a bit of momentum. Consistency in rates is key. If we can see a steady lowering of product rates and a Base Rate cut in the final quarter of the year, it will set us up nicely for a very active start to next year.

September is usually the last push for homemovers to be in their new home by Christmas. August has been unseasonably busy, which could be attributed to the shocking summer we have had. Lenders have usually met their targets heading into the last quarter but for those that haven't there will be another incentive to be aggressive with pricing and policy changes, which we are already seeing. In summary, we are expecting activity to ramp up and rates to come down.

With the General Election now over, SWAPs behaving and a Bank of England base rate cut, the market has shown a huge amount of activity with people now feeling more confident in property. Downward rate movements across every type of property finance have spurred more people to act. The urgency to lock in a rate on remortgages has dropped off slightly with people not feeling the need to do so as quickly, but conversely this has meant more people looking to buy and stress tests easing off, making leverage more aggressive.

The market is definitely picking up, and I believe we could see an even stronger surge in property activity as we head into the final months of 2024. With lenders continuing to drop rates, especially with Nationwide's latest market-leading 5-year fix, it's clear that momentum is building. Once the kids are back in school and families refocus on housing, I wouldn't be surprised to see the market fly in September. If rates keep falling, property prices could rise faster than expected. Of course, global factors like economic uncertainty or geopolitical events could throw a curveball, but overall I remain optimistic. Even if we don't get a base rate cut in September, I fully expect one before the year is out, which would give the market another shot in the arm. All in all, it looks like a busy and positive run-up to Christmas.

The daily rate cuts being launched by lenders have been welcomed by hard-strapped borrowers eager to find a mortgage bedfellow for the coming years. With purchase products being very enticing of late, this has helped press the market forward. Highlights in both traditional and buy to let purchase products being sub 4% are a sight for sore eyes, I don’t think it will be long before remortgage deals have the same excitement about them as we work further into the second half of the year. With the kids going back to school in the next few weeks this will give some households the opportunity to focus on the finances and get things in order before the next mind vacuum of Christmas comes and takes over. If the current momentum continues and borrowers are not make to feel like Dick Turpin has paid them a visit in the October budget, the second half of 2024 could turn out to be okay.