However, the negativity has lessened, as the latest results show that 23% think it’s a good time to buy and 28% disagree.
More people think it’s a bad time to buy property than a good time – and this has been the case for the past two years, the BSA’s quarterly property tracker survey shows.
However, the negativity has lessened, as the latest results show that 23% think it’s a good time to buy and 28% disagree. Back in March a third (33%) disagreed that it was a good time to buy.
Paul Broadhead (pictured), head of mortgages and housing policy at the BSA, said: “It’s no surprise that the UK views the housing market in a negative light. We are in the midst of a housing crisis and the political landscape is in undoubtable turmoil. Naturally, these combined forces are unsettling homeowners and making them less likely to want to move.
“Fewer homes on the market means intensified competition, which consequentially push house prices up. Unfortunately, this has a knock-on effect on first-time buyers, who are already struggling to pull together a deposit.
“This cocktail of existing homeowners staying put, and would-be first-time buyers failing to get on the ladder at all, means we risk stagnating the housing market further. To aid this, financial service providers could help educate people of the benefits of saving little and often.”
He encouraged consumers to take advantage of initiatives like the Help to Buy ISA and the Lifetime ISA, the former of which is closing to new accounts at the end of November.
Of the people who disagreed that now is a good time to buy, a third (34%) said a correction in house prices would make them change their mind.
Meanwhile a quarter (27%) said the UK reaching an agreement with the EU would make them more positive, with just one in 10 (11%) saying a no deal scenario would make them more optimistic.
The survey was commissioned by the BSA and conducted by YouGov and over 2,000 adults were sampled between 31 May and 3 June.
