NEWS The shape of Bath’s property market

Property market

The Bath market is booming, but not universally

KEEP ON MOVING

In August, RightMove reported £37 billion worth of house sales –the UK property market's busiest month in more than a decade. But can this 'mini boom' last? We talk to two of Bath's leading estate agents

It’s impossible to predict at this point the long-term impact of the pandemic on daily life, let alone the property market, but the current so called Ӊmini boom¼ in sales nationally can be attributed to the abrupt shift in lifestyle we have seen since lockdown was announced back in March. The move towards home working has lessened the need to live in cities, basically, which is inspiring people to decamp to more rural areas, where they'll have the other thing we all desperately needed while staying home – outside space. Other factors like the suspension of Stamp Duty Land Tax and Help To Buy government assistance are also driving sales.

The movement in Bath very much reÆects these national trends.

“As soon as lockdown lifted we saw a huge increase in demand from buyers from all corners of the globe, not just the London market as has been continually written in the press,” says David Mackenzie, residential sales partner with Carter Jonas in Bath. The quality of life the city is famous for means Bath has really held its value in the market. “Uncertainty abroad has meant ex-pats from Hong Kong, and the wider middle and far east have determined their move here – be it for schools, links to be near family, or just to enjoy the serenity of Bath's surroundings.”

There's a lot of excitement around the market right now, but it's important to note that enthusiasm is not universal to all property types.

“The stock levels have driven viewers with healthy competition. We have seen a number of properties go to ‘competitive bidding’, which means achieving in excess of the guide prices,” explains Sam Daniels, associate with Knight Frank. “Don’t get me wrong, not every aspect of the market has been so good. The demand really has been for larger family homes with more outside space.”

David's experience has been much the same. “Last week I was reporting to a client we had gone to best and final oٺers and received 13 bids over the guide price and achieved £100,000 more than we were expecting. A minute later, I was advising a client they would need to reduce by 15 per cent because they were in a property where demand in the sector has hugely decreased after lockdown,” he says. Apartments without that key outside space are selling, but overall for lower asking prices than perhaps we might have seen pre-Covid.

But will this ‘mini boom’ last? It’s hard to call. With the recession and the continued uncertainty caused by Covid-19, at this point it’s anyone’s guess. “My heart is saying it will but my gut is saying it won’t,” says Sam. “What I do know is that Bath is a fantastic city and also bounces back bigger and better very quickly.”

And, David says, he hasn’t seen signs of the recession hitting yet. “From previous experience, recessions tend to be hardest felt in areas where there is high demand from first time buaers. *ath as a whole is not impacted as much as larger cities, where there is more movement from buyers needing starter jobs,” he explains. “Bath has a larger demand from families moving for education, or because they have the ability to work from home, so hopefully this will continue to hold up demand and prices in the city and the surrounding countryside.” For more: www.knightfrank.co.uk; www.carterjonas.co.uk