Peak in selling sentiment as house price optimism for 2015 grows
The third monthly wave of the Halifax Housing Market Confidence Tracker in 2015 shows that two thirds of Britons (67%) expect the average UK property price to rise this year, up slightly from 64% who said this in February 2015.
The third monthly wave of the Halifax Housing Market Confidence Tracker in 2015 shows that two thirds of Britons (67%) expect the average UK property price to rise this year, up slightly from 64% who said this in February 2015.
This compares to 3% who expect the average price to fall, leaving the headline House Price Outlook balance (HPO – the proportion of people that expect the average house price to rise in the next 12 months less those who think it will fall) at +64. This is four points higher than the equivalent figure last month (HPO was +60 in February 2015), which is the highest it has been since July 2014 (when HPO was +66).
At the same time, selling sentiment has reached a new high for the survey. Three in five Britons (59%) think the next twelve months will be a good time to sell, one quarter (26%) think it will be a bad time, leaving a net balance of +33, the highest figure seen on this measure since the survey’s inception in April 2011.
Meanwhile the net figure for buying sentiment (+21) has dropped below selling sentiment. The proportion of Britons who think it will be a good time to buy over the next 12 months has fallen from 61% last month, to 53%. This is smaller than the proportion who think it will be a good time to sell, where positive selling sentiment rose from 56% to 59% over the same period.
Other findings include:
- Buying sentiment is more positive in the South East England, where 63% think the next 12 months will be a good time to buy property compared to 53% of Britons overall. Meanwhile people in London are much less likely than overall to say it will be a good time to buy (31%).
- Those in South East England and Eastern England are significantly more likely than Britons overall to say it will be a good time to sell (both at 76% compared to 59%, overall), while those in North West England are less likely to say this (44%).
- Two in five (41%) think it will be both a good time to buy and sell over the next 12 months, which has fallen slightly from the survey high on this measure (43%) in February 2015.
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Technical note
Ipsos interviewed 2,000 British adults aged 16+ face-to-face, between 13th March – 1st April 2015. Data has been weighted to the known population profile.
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