The proportion of British adults planning a house move in the next six months – consistent throughout 2018 at 8% – fell to 6% in the 48 hours following last week’s interest rate rise, according to new research conducted before and after the last week’s announcement for AA Financial Services.
Following concern that mortgages will start to become more expensive for homeowners, the new AA study suggests rising interest rates will dampen consumer appetite for moving home.
The new AA study looks at future demand for property – tracking people’s intentions to move, the timescale for moving, planned spend on a new home and the regions where people are most likely to be moving to and from.
The AA’s figures for July, suggested a summer high in property confidence, with a rise in proportion of people planning to move home in very short term (three months) before September.
The average planned spend on a new home was up to an average of £320,736, from £312,702 in April.
Meanwhile, the AA recorded a swing from renting to buying as movers head south.
In addition, 20% of under 25s are currently planning to buy their next home, up from 13%.
David Searle, managing director at AA Financial Services, said: “After years of record low interest rates, last week’s rise – and indications that more is yet to come – mean that the cost of buying a home is going to get more expensive.
“Given many people are moving home to save money, release equity or to make their money go a bit further it seems that, for some, the reality of living with rate rises may well temper their plans to move in the short term.
“We saw many positive signs emerging from our research in July, promise of a house moving high for late summer, which the rate rise seems to have dampened.”