Moving house after the coronavirus pandemic? Our guide navigating the UK housing market after COVID-19

 

It’s not been talked about all that much, but those moving house in the past few months have had a rough old time. In our aparthotels we’ve temporarily housed many people who have found themselves stuck in the ‘housing limbo’ – those whose rents have run out but have struggled to find a new long-term place during the lockdown. So what is the new normal in terms of moving house after coronavirus, and how tough is it to move house in this day and age?

 

How has moving house worked during the coronavirus?

 

Have you ever been bored on google maps and dragged the little yellow man out onto one of the streets? If so, you’d be met with a 3D, 360-degree view of that specific place in the world. This is the same technology that estate agents have recently harnessed – a virtual reality system that uses panoramic photos taken by special cameras around the property. It’s one better than a video tour, because you can control where you go and what you look at, but it’s still not been sufficient enough for many people to commit to moving into a property in the past few months.

 

 

House prices after the coronavirus

 

The market has certainly been impacted by the lockdown, and from April to May the house price index fell by 1.7%, a seismic drop in the space of a month. But one thing is very clear: this crash is not even close to that of the 2008 financial crash. Back then, market prices fell by something close to 20% – and although we’ve yet to see the full extent of the virus’ impact on the market, we can be quite sure that it won’t drop anywhere near as low this time round.

 

Have house prices stopped dropping?

 

There are signs that the market is starting to stabilise, but many people are forecasting a more gradual long-term drop to take effect over the next year or so. As job security and wage growth drops, people are less confident paying out their mortgages and the market stagnates.

Plus, with the sudden shift to remote work and some companies not returning to offices this year, the value of properties close to cities could be at significant risk in the coming months.

 

How the coronavirus has delayed house building

 

Another element of the virus’ impact on the housing market which has gone under the radar is the delay in building homes themselves. According to a study by the homeless charity Shelter, 300,000 new homes which were planned over the next few years may have to be left in that planning phase – 85,000 of which were to come in 2020. Although this may make the market more competitive, it is a worrying development in the face of an already significant housing crisis in the UK.

 

If you’re moving house after coronavirus around London, Manchester or Brighton and looking for temporary accommodation with no contracts and hidden bills, Supercity Aparthotels is here to help. We never ask for any deposits or references, and if you stay longer than 14 days we’ll even give you 40% off our rates. For more information, click here.