69% Drop in Properties For Sale Today in St Neots Compared to 10 Years Ago

There is good news for St Neots buy to let landlords as ‘top of the range’ well-presented properties are getting really decent rents compared to a year ago. However, this rise in rents is preventing many potential first time buyers from saving for both a deposit and money for a rainy day. On top of this, there is also a shortage of St Neots homes coming on the market thus adding fuel to the slowdown and affecting not just St Neots first time buyers but also those going up the housing ladder.

Whilst it is true that the Government’s initiatives, aiming to increase the number of homes built and helping first time buyers obtaining necessary funding, are starting to work, I also believe that to boost more existing home-owners and their properties onto the market, we as a Country, need to see a better focus placed on those looking to downsize i.e. House to Apartment.

In addition to this, if we took away some hurdles to home owners downsizing, together with encouraging even more first-time buyers with 100% mortgages to buy the smaller properties, this would in turn release more mid-range properties onto the market, which subsequently would encourage more mature homeowners to downsize from their bigger properties to buy those mid-range properties - thus completing the circle.

Looking at the most recent set of data from the Land Registry for St Neots (the PE19 postcode in particular), the figures show the indifferent nature of the current St Neots property market.

Only 440 St Neots (PE19) Homes changed hands in the last 6 months

St Neots property values and transactions continue to be sluggish, and the monthly peaks and troughs of house prices and changes doesn’t hide the lack of suitable priced properties coming onto the St Neots property market, meaning the housing market is slowly becoming inaccessible to some would-be home owners.

Looking at what each property type is selling for in PE19 makes interesting reading ….

One must remember these are the average prices paid, so it only takes a run of a few expensive or cheaper property types to affect the figures…

Looking at the numbers of properties for sale, my research for early Summer 2008 stated that 733 properties were on the market for sale in St Neots.. and when I did my research on this article today, just 224 properties for sale.. a drop of 69%.

The Government needs to consider the supply and demand of the UK property market as a whole to ensure it doesn’t seize up. It needs to do that with bold and forward-thinking plans but, in the meantime, people still need a roof over their heads. Therefore, St Neots landlords can temporarily help. If you want to know what tenants are looking for and what type of things you as a St Neots landlord need to do to maximise your rental returns – drop me a line.