How To Sell Your Home Before 2020 Is Through

For most homeowners, the thought of selling a house in 2020 is anxiety-inducing. To some, it feels like tempting fate. However, for a smart, bold few, positioning a property on the housing market is particularly alluring.   The Good: Short-Term Market Improvements Why? Well, here’s the thing: the UK’s housing market is exceptionally robust.   At the height of COVID-19 panic, Britain’s house prices were up. You read right, up! Compared to July 2019, property had increased in value by 1.7 per cent.   What’s the cause of this miracle? Well, it boils down to stability in one portion of the market. Projections have shown that interest rates are set to stay low, contributing to housing prices’ continued aggregation.   However, this economic boon isn’t set to last.   The Bad: Long-Term Market Dereliction JLL forecasts predict that the bounce in sales, now that the market has reopened, will be small. The uptick was, primarily, due to pent-up demand.   Now that the bounce-window has closed, the UK’s housing market is on a downward trajectory. Put simply, housing prices in 2020 are likely to plateau lower than property values at the culmination of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis.   Annual transactions are presumed to drop to around 650,000 in 2020 from 1.2m in 2019. For reference, between 2008/09 this figure bottomed out at 750,000.   Arguably, the most important figure we need to tackle is price growth, and sadly, that’s not looking much prettier.   On average, the UK’s house price growth will drop to -8 per cent, but, that’s as bad as it will get. Prices will increase to around -1 per cent in 2021 and finally recover to 3 per cent in 2022.   If you’re a seller in London, great news! Prime Central London property prices will get it only half as bad as the rest of the country, with a -4 per cent downturn in 2020, followed by an increase of 4 per cent by the close of 2021.   If all pans out, properties in the Big Smoke will have returned to their pre-COVID prices in just 18 months.   However, for the rest of the country, and even in Greater London, house values will be lower than we’d like – for longer, too.   Buying will also be affected by an expected rise in unemployment, set to hit at the end of 2020, and a return to that looming Dickensian spectre: Brexit.   It seems as if everything’s against sellers in 2020. That’s why it’s genuinely necessary to grab anything that’ll give you a fighting chance when shifting your property in 2020.   The Struggle-y: Clawing Your House To Its Maximum Value The Home Staging Association UK & Ireland is proud to support an industry that provides a life-saving service to the housing market.   It’s no great secret that Home Staging can increase a home’s asking price by 6 to 20 per cent. In addition, 91 per cent of staged homes sell like proverbial hotcakes (yum, brick and mortar buns), with money changing hands 3 times faster than in unstaged homes.   Estate agents think home staging is a must. In 2019, the HSA UK & Ireland asked how many real estate companies would recommend home dressing to sellers. Their answer?   86 per cent. That’s a professional opinion – tried, tested, sheerly quantitative.   Here’s another: does staging increase viewings? 94 per cent of agents said ‘yes’. What do more viewings mean? More potential customers. It’s a no-brainer.   So, you know the value of home dressing. How does one class a home ‘successfully staged’?   Home Staging Tips & Tricks To Increase Your House’s Value Here are a few essentials, courtesy of Paloma Harrington-Griffin, director of the Home Staging Association UK & Ireland, to improve upon your house’s price in 2020.   “Inspect and Correct: Examine your floors and walls, consider a lick of paint after a colour consultation and make sure to check for creaky floorboards. “Incorporate mirrors – not only do they bring more style to a space but they also make it appear brighter and seem more spacious.   “Create Focal Points: Each room should have an area where eyes are naturally drawn to. Think creatively to come up with ways of repurposing objects to take centre stage. With living rooms, symmetrical arrangements work really well. Pull your furniture off the walls and rearrange them to create an inviting area.   “Don’t Forget Outside: Whether your garden is acres long or only a compact balcony, play around and accessorize. Try adding a chic table and chair set with a stunning centrepiece.”   Of course, it goes without saying: if you want a job done right, hire a professional. If you’re unsure, use the HSA UK & Ireland’s business-finding tool.   It only takes a few minutes and might just boost your home’s value beyond the aforementioned post-COVID slump.   So, it’s not all doom and gloom. Thanks to home staging, the housing market is in a more stable, economically incensed position.   What are you waiting for: sell your property!   Want to know more about Home Staging and how to find a professional? Please visit: www.homestaging.org.uk Home Staging Association UK & Ireland