Accidental landlords return to UK homes for sale market

November 13, 2008 by OPPE News

UK homes sales could get a boost as ‘accidental landlords’ whose properties had failed to sell return to the market, analysts say.

Summer saw some property investment homes taken off the market and rented by their owners as transactions cooled.

But estate agent Cluttons said “reality has sunk in” for some vendors who have re-priced houses and again put them up for sale.

The company said sellers were realising Britain was now facing a longer-term slump instead of a short-term dip.

Cluttons residential sales partner James Hyam said:

“This is good news for the sales market, which has been stalled in part by the reluctance of sellers to recognise that their homes are worth considerably less than they were a year ago.”

He added there are “plenty” of buyers with big enough deposits to access mortgages, while deals could be done with “reasonable” sellers.

Cluttons also said prices were dropping across London and the South East and recent cuts in interest rates could also help re-ignite sales.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors recently said UK sellers were starting to lower prices, with reductions of up to 13 per cent appearing in some areas.