While we are all in lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic it is no time to relax. You need to keep working to find new investment opportunities and keep tabs on the housing market. Technology is your friend with this endeavour.
Yes it has been a difficult first quarter of 2020 due to COVID-19. But believe it or not there is a trickle of activity in the house market right now. Things are certainly a lot slower than usual but companies and individuals are finding creative ways of overcoming the obvious obstacles and keep things moving in the market.
Use Technology for your Property Research
A lot of property investors have realised that it is a very good time now to carry on with their property research. It takes between 2 and 6 months to complete a thorough property search according to advisory firm Hannah Aykroyd.
Thorough property searches include property specifics and comprehensive research of the desired location. So as a property investor you have the opportunity to perform your property searches using the vast amount of technology available to support you. As soon as the lockdown is over you can then be a first mover.
Problems slowly being overcome
Buying and selling property is certainly extremely difficult right now due to the coronavirus pandemic. A lot of financial institutions panicked and withdrew mortgage offers from the market and at this moment it is not possible to undertake viewings. There are also some issues with conveyancing.
But things are slowly changing. Some building sites are now reopening and there is technology available for virtual viewings. Buyers and sellers are becoming more aware of the available technology and using it to their advantage. It is very likely that this technology will continue to be used after the lockdown is lifted.
Investment companies and estate agents soldier on as they can process most of their paperwork with a remote connection. There are also some innovative solutions happening in the conveyancing sector as well.
There is even a revival of mortgage lending. People are able to use technology to make applications and valuations for mortgages are happening online too. All of this means that it is certainly possible to conduct a property transaction using technology right now.
Strong Start to 2020 Helped the Market
When Boris Johnson was confirmed as Prime Minister in December 2019 there was a feel good factor that Brexit would be in safer hands and there was a lot of confidence in the housing market. Rental demand was high in the first quarter and house prices remained strong.
This put the market in a strong position to deal with the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. As with any disaster, people find a way to adapt and technology has played a significant role. Despite this there are some gloomy estimates for house price falls by the end of the year because of COVID-19. CEBR predict a 13% reduction.
But we recommend that you ignore all of the doom and gloom such as this. We have been there a few times before and recently with the Brexit vote. There were forecasts of a 10% and even 20% reduction in house prices if the country voted for Brexit. These reductions never materialised.
