Fresh New Year

44 Fresh New Year

January is a great time to catch up on all those household chores and get going with an early ‘spring’ clean. Make it more enjoyable and planet-friendly by choosing goodlooking tools and eco-conscious supplies.

This coconut fibre scourer

has a bamboo handle, both of which are plant-based and biodegradable; the stainlesssteel wire is easily recyclable.

Bambaw reusable bamboo dish brush, £6, beaumonde. co.uk. Good-looking storage makes organisation more enjoyable.

Matt black steel and bamboo caddy, £10; all-purpose hob cleaner, £3; bamboo and plastic scrubbing brush, £2; bamboo round dish brush, £2; all dunelm.com.

Generously sized and made from pure cotton, this gingham apron features a pair of handy patch pockets.

Auberge apron in Wedgwood blue, £16.99, waltonshop.co.uk.

Take the effort out of everyday cleaning.

Long-handle dustpan and brush, £25, gardentrading.co.uk.

The sustainable

way to clean dirty dishes. Simply compost when finished with them.

Natural latex rubber gloves, £3, zerozen.co.uk. Make light work of house cleaning

• If you can’t bear the thought of tackling all the cleaning at once, divide it into manageable tasks, and devote perhaps an hour a week – or else tackle one room at a time, maybe over a weekend.

• Be prepared. Have a thorough clear-out and tidy, change into old clothes and rubber gloves, and gather the necessary equipment and products. This is where a sturdy caddy, a tool belt, or an apron with plenty of large pockets becomes invaluable – keeping everything with you as you go will save lots of time.

• As you work, try to be organised, whether it’s one room at a time or one task at a time. The chores will generally divide into five main areas: vacuuming, dusting, mopping/scrubbing, washing and wiping, and polishing, so bear this in mind when planning, so as not to miss anything out.

• Don’t forget specific tasks such as turning mattresses, spot-cleaning upholstery, deepcleaning the oven, defrosting the freezer, descaling the shower head and steam cleaning carpets.

• Work from the top of a room to the bottom (in other words, dust the pendant light before polishing the table beneath it). Prioritise the hardest-to-clean item in the room to do early on – then the rest of the room will be a breeze.

This lemon-scented washingup soap bar is 100% natural, biodegradable, plastic-free and contains no palm oil.

Dish-washing soap bar in lemon, £7.99, suusco.com. This eco-friendly cleaner works on a range of high-gloss surfaces, and comes in a reusable aluminium bottle along with a microfibre cloth.

Glass cleaner starter pack, £6.99, wearthlondon.com.

Make light work of dusting without the need for toxic chemicals.

Living Nostalgia genuine natural ostrich feather duster, kitchencraft.co.uk.

These heavy-knitted cloths can be used, washed, and used again.

Bleached stockinette dishcloth, £1.79, waltonshop.co.uk.

What Will House Prices Do In 2022?

When Boris and Co won the election in December 2019, it was a turning point in the housing market. A new Government with a sizeable majority meant certainty for the markets, and estate agents nationwide reported an immediate increase in prices and interest, dubbed the ‘Boris Bounce’. Just 50 days later, on 31st January, a very unwelcome visitor landed in the UK – the COVID-19 virus - and by the time the country was subsequently locked down on 23rd March, there were fears that the growing housing market activity would be curbed again as a result. Instead, we have seen one of the busiest 18-month periods in the housing market in more than a decade. Around one in 16 homes in the UK changed hands this year, fuelled by a mix of the pandemic-led reassessments of lifestyle, the need to work from home and maximise living space, and the tax break of the stamp duty holiday. The demand in the market has caused a tightening of housing stock levels, and put upward pressure on house prices, with the annual rate of house price growth now at 6.9%. House prices in Wigan have increased by approximately 8% in the last 12 months, but the number of new properties coming to the market in Wigan is slowing. House prices are still increasing but at a slower rate, suggesting the property market may be starting to moderate.

My housing market prediction for 2022? I expect buyer demand to climb again as we move into Q1 of 2022. While the stamp duty holiday has ended, demand from buyers remains 28% higher than average, suggesting that the property market has further to run this year. Supply levels will also begin to rise again, as new listings are typically 50% higher at the end of January compared to the beginning of December. As we move through 2022, supply pipelines will have a chance to rebuild after the busy early year market and the balance between supply and demand normalises. This is one of the factors that will ease the upward momentum on pricing. Alongside this, next year will mark the emergence of economic headwinds as the rising cost of living, and potentially mortgage interest rates, creates an impact on household finances.

Even with several quarter point interest rate rises though, mortgages will remain relatively low compared to longerterm norms, and the fact that many homeowners with mortgages are on fixed rates will shelter parts of the market from any immediate impact. It remains to be seen how many properties will be sold in 2002, but I do not expect as many will be sold as this year, but still more than previous years. To summarise then, I expect more properties will be sold in 2022 than average, though not as many as 2021. House prices will continue to rise in value, but I expect a slowdown in the rate of growth and by the end of 2022, I expect house price growth to be running between 3% and 5%.

Alan Batt is a member of The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and has worked within the Wigan property market for over 40 years.