"The market is clearly going through a very active period. In part, this is down to the fact that we’re witnessing the departure of a number of over-leveraged landlords"
- Jeremy Prior - Auction House
According to newly released figures, between the start of January and the end of August, the group successfully sold 2,913 lots, compared to 2,424 last year – a rise of 20%. In the month of August alone (traditionally a quiet month for auctioneering) the group sold 269 lots, compared to 242 the year before – an 11% increase.
Auction House Managing Director Jeremy Prior said: “As these figures show, the auction market is simply getting busier and busier. But as a company, what we’ve managed to crack is the ability to track down those elusive buyers who are still prepared to open their wallets. Because, without doubt, there are now some excellent opportunities for investors out there.”
The release of these figures comes after predictions from a national estate agent last week that rents will rise four times faster than house prices over the next four years. Using Office for National Statistics and Bank of England data, it forecast that rents could soar by 25% before the end of 2026, compared with a 5.5% growth in house prices.
Auction House is also reporting that a massive 897 lots have been entered into its September auctions – significantly up on the 600-650 properties which were entered in the previous three months.
Jeremy adds: “The market is clearly going through a very active period. In part, this is down to the fact that we’re witnessing the departure of a number of over-leveraged landlords. But although buyer demand may have decreased, properties coming onto the market are being sold to those canny investors who have cash in the bank, and who are not so reliant on borrowing.
“Buy-to-let properties make up a significant proportion of our stock – with many of those in lower price brackets. And the truth is that lower-value properties often have the highest buyer demand because they tend to attract a better rental yield than higher-value properties.
“And even if there’s another rise in interest rates this week when the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee meets on the 21 September, we would agree with the majority of economists predicting that a 0.25% hike from 5.25% to 5.5% may well represent the peak in UK interest rates.
“Meanwhile, Auction House will continue doing what it has always done: to position the largest number of auction properties in the UK in front of the right buyers at the right time, and continue to sell more lots, month in, month out, than any other property auctioneer in the country.”
