Home seekers could soon be subjected to 'health screenings' by estate agents on the phone before viewing a property in person, a leading property website claims.
Aside from this development in the property market, Rightmove says there are strong signs that buyers are poised and ready to move. Visits from potential buyers to the websites are reportedly already back up to where they were before lockdown.
On 13 May, over 5million people visited Rightmove in 24 hours, marking a 4 per cent increase on a year ago, the online site said.
Go virtual: The Government is encouraging viewings to be done virtually at present
It remains to be seen whether online browsing homes turns into property transactions, particularly as buyers will be cautious over predicted price drops and sellers reluctant to drop asking prices.
There could also be sticking points as lenders try to figure out property values and how much they are prepared to lend.
The UK's property market has been given the go ahead to get moving again by the Government this week, with Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick claiming the sector could play a vital role in an economic recovery.
Home moves are now permitted, estate agents can open and prospective buyers will be tempted by cheap mortgage deals.
Halifax has reported seeing mortgage applications spike by 36 per cent in the past week compared with a week earlier.
With people staying cautious about social distancing, many estate agents are ramping up the number of online virtual property tour videos they produce.
Estate agents are also scrambling to sort out how in-person viewings will work while adhering to social distancing measures.
Rightmove suggests buyers might end up being subjected to an unappealing 'health screening' on the phone by their estate agent before they can view a property in person.
Rightmove said: 'Organising physical viewings will also mean estate agents taking on the unfamiliar task of health screening, as they quiz both sellers and buyers for Covid-19 symptoms or vulnerabilities, so they will be keen to follow the government guidance that the buyers who want to view in person should be serious.'
Another critical issue in the market will be price. The Bank of England has predicted that house prices could fall by 16 per cent over the next year. This might mean that buyers may wait over the next few months and see how prices pan out, rather than race straight out of the starting blocks after lockdown and buy a property.
Estate agents and sellers could also face trouble with buyers wanting to pull out of deals once they see that the value of the home they were planning on buying has gone down.
Stock levels also look set to remain low, as they have been for a few years already. Sellers who are not desperate to move may end up being reluctant to put their property up for sale if it looks like prices have dropped significantly.
Rightmove said the number of homes being added to its site was down 90 per cent on a year ago, with 'too few' homes coming up for sale to be able to work out how asking prices have changed over time.
Surge: Rightmove says its browsing figures are back up to pre-lockdown levels
In normal circumstances, Rightmove would be publishing its house price index next week, but this time round there has not been enough stock coming up for sale to be able to gauge how asking prices have been fluctuating.
But, Rightmove added that on a week-on-week basis, it had seen the number of homes being listed on its site rise by 111 per cent, coinciding with the easing of certain lockdown measures.
Potential pitfalls in the property sector aside, Rigtmove claims it had 5.2million visitors to its website on 13 May, the day the property market was taken out of the deep freeze.
Sales demand, which relates to potential buyers actually making an enquiry via Rightmove about a property they see online, doubled from Tuesday to Wednesday this week.
Meanwhile, Rightmove said rental demand also surged this week, with the highest number of queries from potential tenants coming through since September 2019.
Miles Shipside, director of Rightmove, said the sector had been 'caught by surprise' at the easing of rules by the Government this week.
But, in some respects, with the economy in disarray and taxpayers bearing the huge burden of massive furloughing costs, it is not too surprising that the Government was so keen to get the property market moving before the pandemic has truly subsided all over the country.
Mr Shipside added: 'The traditionally busy spring market was curtailed by lockdown, but we're now seeing clear signs of returning momentum, with the existing desire to move now being supplemented by some people's unhappiness with their lockdown home and surroundings.'
On the price front, Mr Shipside said: 'With no new seller asking price data it’s too early to comment on price movements, though high demand is needed to support a stable market. If there are attractive lower deposit mortgages available it would help sustain the recovery in activity.'
Getting things moving: Housing Minister Robert Jenrick, who was accused of breaking lockdown rules himself, took the brakes of the housing sector this week
Estate agent and chairman of Jackson-Stops Nick Leeming said his Exeter branch received four requests from buyers to view properties, all before 10:30am on the day the market reopened.
Mr Leeming said his Alderley Edge branch also received two requests for valuations and three calls from buyers asking to view properties both above and below the £1million price band before noon.
On the possibility of in-person property viewings, Mr Leeming said: 'Rome was not built in a day.'
And, of course, Scotland and Wales still have compete lockdowns in place, restricting he level of housing market activity that can take place in those areas.
Recent research from Savills revealed that house hunters are increasingly prioritising properties with space to work from home, and those in village locations.
A few weeks ago, separate findings from Rightmove also suggested that there had been an upswing in the number of people looking for homes outside of big and overcrowded cities like London and Birmingham in favour of more rural locations.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMihgFodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGlzaXNtb25leS5jby51ay9tb25leS9tb3J0Z2FnZXNob21lL2FydGljbGUtODMyMjc2MS9CdXllcnMtc3ViamVjdGVkLWhlYWx0aC1zY3JlZW5pbmdzLWVzdGF0ZS1hZ2VudHMtcGhvbmUtQ292aWQtMTkuaHRtbNIBigFodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGlzaXNtb25leS5jby51ay9tb25leS9tb3J0Z2FnZXNob21lL2FydGljbGUtODMyMjc2MS9hbXAvQnV5ZXJzLXN1YmplY3RlZC1oZWFsdGgtc2NyZWVuaW5ncy1lc3RhdGUtYWdlbnRzLXBob25lLUNvdmlkLTE5Lmh0bWw?oc=5
2020-05-16 11:53:00Z
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