Valuations up by 50%

00:00 Monday 7th December 2009

Consolidation of the housing market continues as valuation activity has risen by over 50% on November last year, according to the latest data from Connells Survey & Valuation.

Growing confidence in the housing market has been mirrored by a marked rise in the number of valuations for home purchase - suggesting that 2009 will end on a much more positive note than 2008. In October and November alone, the number of valuations conducted was higher than the whole of the fourth quarter of 2008.

Current homeowners were especially active compared to the previous November, with nearly twice as many requesting valuations on properties. In the past two months alone, 40% more valuations were conducted for homeowners than in the whole of the fourth quarter in 2008.

Valuations for buy-to-let investors too have risen by 7% in October and November, compared with the fourth quarter of 2008, with transactions increasing by over a third on last November.

Additionally, more first time buyers are taking the first step on the property ladder, despite requiring large deposits,. There were two-thirds more valuations for first-time buyers than at the same month last year, however this was from a relatively low base.

Ross Bowen, Managing Director for Connells Survey & Valuation said: “Despite fears over the effects of rising unemployment and an uncertain economic backdrop, we’ve seen the housing market stage a modest recovery. The upsurge in the number of valuations conducted is another sign of the distance the market has travelled since 2008. We have seen a year on year increase from all types of homebuyer. As house prices rise, we are seeing the effects of gradually increasing optimism in the housing market - boosting the demand for property from all types of purchaser. If this recovery in activity levels continues in the same vein, we should see a far more positive start to the new year.”

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Valuations up by 50%

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