Agents were finally told last night that they should not open branches to the public or visit people’s homes, and prospective sellers were warned that agents would not be able to market their homes as normal.
The Government also said that agents should “ensure” that employees can work from home.
The advice, published under the headline of “Buying and selling homes during this stay-at-home period”, says that agents should “continue to progress sales where this can be done whilst following guidance to stay at home and away from others”.
The Government’s new guidelines say that there “is no need to pull out of transactions” and draws attention to the exemption for “critical home moves” – those that go ahead where the parties cannot agree a new date.
Removals firms have been told that they should honour their existing commitments “where it is clear that the move can be done safely” and where the moving date cannot be changed.
The advice contradicts, and presumably over-rides, advice from removals industry body BAR to its members that they should cancel or postpone moves that had not started by the evening of March 23, when Boris Johnson gave his “stay at home” speech.
The Government yesterday evening said that it has issued its new guidance in conjunction with Public Health England.
It reiterated that home buyers and renters should, where possible, delay moving.
The new guidelines also distinguish between moving into empty properties, and those still occupied. In the former case, the transaction can be continued; in the latter case, the parties should seek to delay exchange of contract, or the contracts should include specific provisions.
UK Finance, the trade body for lenders, says that its members are working for ways to extend mortgage offers for up to three months, enabling buyers to move at a later date.
The new government guidance says that if a customer’s circumstances change during that three month period, lenders will work with customers to help them manage their finances as a matter of urgency.
The guidance also warns potential sellers that “getting your home on to the market may be more challenging than usual in this period. There should be no visitors to your home.
“You can speak to estate agents over the phone and they will be able to give you general advice about the local property market and handle certain matters remotely, but they will not be able to start actively marketing your home in the usual manner.”
Last night the Law Society said it welcomed the new advice.
Law Society president Simon David said: “Those who have not exchanged contracts would be well advised to wait and those who have exchanged contracts are encouraged to take a practical view and extend the contractual completion date if this can be agreed – and if the risks are clearly understood by both buyers and sellers.”
“Our members will now be talking to their clients to try to find workable alternatives to completion in situations where there may be practical barriers whilst social distancing requirements are in place.
“They will be aiming to find pragmatic solutions in situations where contracts have been exchanged but the purchase is not yet completed.”
The full advice is at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/government-advice-on-home-moving-during-the-coronavirus-covid-19-outbreak
We are going to see the mother of all Equity Release stampedes. If homeowners have any sense they will be locking in gains at low interest rates and taking advantage of those moronic ‘no negative equity’ guarantees. The FCA bleated a bit about these last year but of course did nothing. Nothing can be allowed to threaten the great housing bubble. But if prices do start to sag, there are going to be some VERY squeaky bums, because I reckone those herbert firms have lent billions and billions in equity release with guarantees attached. If prices fall significantly and people stop paying their equity loans, they are going to be some mega losses. Like the Savings and Loans crisis in USA in mid 1980s.
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To any Agent that was still “Open” …… Why? Which bit of “Stay Home” did you not understand?
So, the Government then needs to issue advice, lenders/banks weigh in and then we witness a raft of likely damaging headlines!
In my town, in Scotland, Agents were shut on Tuesday. We followed Scottish Government advice. We are NOT essential workers. I dealt with an “Offer” working from home on Wednesday which in the current lockdown is verbally agreed as a “Reservation” pending when we emerge from this.
Putting the market on-hold for a period is understandable. The lenders need to pause obviously, unhelpful panic headlines not required from them.
Let’s get a grip, that our market is in “PAUSE” Mode …….NOT Freefall.
We go about our business working from home, yes, not a great deal, however we ARE going to emerge from this “PAUSE” period.
Let’s GET A STATEMENT OUT FROM OUR INDUSTRY ABOUT HOW WE ARE DEALING WITH IT AND HOW WE SEE THE INDUSTRY EMERGING FROM THE OTHER SIDE ……..NAEA??????? FFS!
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Equity release will only work for the over 55s. Unless you are near your sell-by date your interest rate will be at least double the average ordinary mortgage rate, typically 4.75% which fills the coffers of the providers. The “no negative equity” guarantees are not moronic; they give security to the borrower and the lender also has security as they will not lend more than one third capital value to people under around 70 and you try trying to get more than two thirds out of them when you are a great-grand parent! And the whole point of equity release loans is that you are encouraged NOT to pay them back till you die, although anyone with any sense should pay back at least some to leave something for a nursing home that is more than basic.
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(originally posted on another thread – seems appropriate for inclusion here but apologies for the duplication!)
Hmmm…
Whoever has apparently been doling out the info that the housing market has been suspended apparently hasn’t told people wanting to sell…
…or to buy, it seems.
According to Zoopla – not the biggest portal but the one where info is easiest obtained – some 2486 properties have been listed as “Just added” in the last 24 hours – and an astounding 484 of those are now marked as “SSTC/Under Offer”!
Now I’m sure that some of those 2486 – quite a few of them, in fairness – are genuine ‘new to market’ listings. But I’m going to give you an example from ‘Page 1’ of the most recent which has just literally taken my breath away – and in my current condition I haven’t got a lot of breath to let go of (and before you all groan – it ISN’T a PurpleListing… although there are DOZENS I could have chosen from…):
zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/28268275
On the face of it doesn’t look too out of the ordinary. But the fact that this “Just added” listing is shown as having had almost THIRTY FOUR THOUSAND page views set my #Portaljuggle hackles on edge.
As can be seen on the Property History, it turns out that it’s actually a listing from March 2013 that has been #RElisted today:
zoopla.co.uk/property-history/33-gravir/isle-of-lewis/hs2-9qx/28268275
Now as to whether it has been on a ‘Marketing Break’… or whether a “sale” has fallen through I can’t say – but it is NOT a ‘new listing’.
Listings abuse is a disease that our industry needs to be rid of. The current portals have no incentive to do this – it is actually in their interests to #RElist til your heart’s content. More numbers to chuck back at you when the price increase letters hit your doormats.
Discuss.
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I may be missing something but there is I believe a point all my fellow conveyancers are overlooking in their desperation to claim business as usual.
Yes contracts can exchange on a notice completion date to seal a transaction. But that also fixes the price.
Nobody knows how long this current situation might last, in some cases six to twelve months has been quoted. Nobody knows how anything will look coming out of this situation. Property and money may be worthless. I may be being over dramatic I don’t know but the fact is nobody does. But looking at previous recessions it would be a huge surprise if property prices didn’t reduce considerably. Which basically means exchanging now and completion in the future when the contract price is likely to be higher than the value of the property at completion. I might be wrong but exchanging contracts now is like playing Russian roulette with your clients future?
I’m not professing to be right I just think conveyancers should be prudent in uncertain times. There are conveyancer posters on here who think they are right about everything so maybe they can correct me? Although there is no right answer we can all have opinions the fact is nobody knows and therefore IMHO nobody should be trying to second guess the situation. Too many are being blasé, flippant, glib and over confident at this time.
Moreover being brutal how can anybody exchange a contract to commit a chain when they cannot be totally certain all those parties will still be alive when the time comes to fix a completion date? People are dying and will continue to do so. Something just seems wrong to me trying to find ways to bumble on in a national crisis.
Only my opinion but I think I’m entitled to air it, even if on other sites people have suggested otherwise.
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Mr Murray
You are, as you suggest, free to post your opinion here on EYE. But every opinion attracts positive or negative reaction – and the EYE community are people whose opinions are highly polarised. Give out whatever you like – just be prepared to take in return.
“Moreover being brutal how can anybody exchange a contract to commit a chain when they cannot be totally certain all those parties will still be alive when the time comes to fix a completion date?”
That, Sir, is a risk with every exchange where a completion date is fixed for a later date, as you well know. Events can and do happen post exchange of Contracts that have devastating effects on the planned conclusion of the transaction – and has been the case since Contracts were first implemented.
Thankfully I have only been involved in one such transaction – which I find frankly amazing considering the total number of sets of keys I or my staff have handed over and the number of years I’ve been involved in the homeselling process – and that was over 30 years ago.
Of course more transactions now seem to be done under simultaneous exchange and completion protocol – which in my opinion has seen a rise in ‘last-minute fall-thoughs’. The added stress of uncertainty until the last minute for all parties is something I believe should be avoided at all costs – yet still it happens time and time again. The only parties that seem to be comfortable with this way of proceeding is the conveyancer – they with the least skin in the game and the least to lose if it all goes t!ts-up at the last minute.
To you… (credit: Barry Chuckle)
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I think I am likely going to stop looking at social media. The messages I keep seeing from business owners in my industry is business as usual and my emotions vary from disbelief to anger, embarrassment to shame. Yes I know they are concerned about their businesses but now is not the time to be bracketed with the likes of Richard Branson, Mike Ashley and Tim Martin is it?
Just to remind everyone though, bad conveyancers are still bad conveyancers even if they are technologically lucky enough to be working from home. If the phrase of the week is business as usual then that can apply in more than one scenario.
Signing off now. Chances are permanently from the conveyancing profession after forty years I’m devastated my colleagues behaviour has driven me to this.
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Mr Murray
I refer you to a quote from the ‘Final Stretch’ episode of Porridge. In my ‘umble opinion it should fill you with resolve to continue… be stronger… ride above those that embarrass you and your beloved profession – and show people how it should be done.
It’s just a short one – being the last words spoken of a brilliant duologue between ‘King of the Hill’ Mr Mackay and his long-term nemesis, Norman Stanley Fletcher – and to me it is as snug a fit as it could be for this purpose.
“…don’t let the b@stards grind you down”.
Stay well. Stay strong. Stay sharp.
Stay true.
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