Real Estate

Britain’s housing market set to reopen


Buying and selling houses is set to return again after seven weeks of gridlock when Britain went into lockdown. 

New regulations set to come into force on Wednesday will mean buyers and renters can once again view properties physically, arrange removals and move home.

The sales market was in effect put on hold in late March when the government advised against all non-essential house moves and banned agents from listing new properties. Since then, trade groups representing estate agents, housebuilders, removals companies, surveyors and legal professionals have been working on a framework of rules to pave the way for a return to work.

They are expected to be advised to keep a 2-metre distance from others and wear gloves where necessary while also keeping high-risk owners out of the home during a viewing. 

Plans for a careful reopening of the property market come amid a wider relaxation of the lockdown by Boris Johnson, prime minister. 

On Wednesday various industries are expected to return to full production where possible, including construction, manufacturing and logistics, although people who can work from home, including most office staff, have been urged to stay put.

For the past two months the housing market has been frozen, with only a handful of sales — agreed before the lockdown — trickling through the system. 

A return to a partially normalised housing market will see new advice issued for everyone involved in the chain, from estate agents to surveyors. 

“Over the last few days the UK residential [property] industry has been working collaboratively to create cross-industry coronavirus guidance for professionals,” said Kate Faulkner, chair of the Home Buying and Selling Group, an industry group that has been leading discussions with the government.

“If everybody the consumer meets does exactly the same thing, they are more likely to understand that this is the new way to move home,” she added.

An early clue came on Monday when the government announced that surveyors, alongside meter readers and plumbers, could return to work in residential homes. The government also loosened restrictions on who can legally verify the identity of buyers and allowed them to sign deeds without an in-person witness. 

But estate agents have been pushing for clearer guidance on when they can start showing clients properties. 

The new regulations do not make clear whether estate agents will be able to market new properties at this stage.

“It is really confusing at the moment,” said David Cox, chief executive of ARLA Propertymark, the trade body for lettings agents.

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One issue is the government’s advice that, under certain circumstances, individuals can meet one other person from outside their household. “Is it one other person at 9am for a viewing, one other person at 10am? Or one person ever?” asked Mr Cox.

Guidance sent by the British Association of Removers to its members and seen by the Financial Times gives some indication of what home moves are set to look like once restrictions ease. 

The guidance stipulates daily temperature checks and advises removal crews to bring their own tea bags. It also hints that moves are likely to become longer and more expensive as a result of “necessary precautions to protect the health, safety and wellbeing of staff, customers and their respective families”.



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