Winkworth reacts to the General Election

Dominic Agace, Chief Executive, of Winkworth estate agents, with over 100 offices nationwide, including more than 60 across the capital, said: "Our advice is that if people are selling now, the market should remain good. They should grab the current momentum we have seen this year and the end of the spring market before the August holidays. Talking to a cross-section of our offices in Hampshire, Norfolk, and Dorset, they have seen no change in customers who are selling and those who are looking to buy now. Our office in Highcliffe in Dorset has just sold a £1.675m house to the first people to see it the day it launched. For those preparing to sell in September, we should have an interest rate cut behind us and most likely a majority Government giving certainty. So far there are no radical anti-property proposals in place."

In Winchester, Bill Jarvis, Director of Winkworth Winchester told us, “There has been no discernible change to the market so far. I don’t think people think that any change will be radical enough to make a difference, so it is not being mentioned very much in terms of impact on value and saleability. The market remains busy for us in Winchester.”

The team at Winkworth Mudeford remains active despite the General Election being called. Gareth Bowden, Sales Manager of Winkworth Mudeford said, “We certainly haven’t seen anything change overnight so far it has been quite busy over the past few weeks and the diary looks busy. People who have decided to move are just going to continue to get on with things. We have some very good purchasers around at the moment just waiting for the right properties to come up.”

Likewise, the team at Poringland sees business continuing as usual, with many clients showing an interest in moving to the countryside. James Colbeck-Rowe, Senior Sales Negotiator at Winkworth Poringland told us, “Here in Norfolk, we haven’t seen any real change since the General Election was announced. The diary is still just as full of viewings and valuations as we would expect May to be. The market remains price-sensitive. There still seems to be a real appetite to move to the countryside. The weather seems to be a bigger dictator to the market conditions than a looming general election. Of course, this is always subject to change and the coming weeks will be very telling, however, the early stages are very promising.”

For sellers, it will be wise to take advantage of this period before the seasonal slowdown in August takes place. The anticipated interest rate cut and potential for a stable government post-election are expected to further bolster market confidence, setting a promising stage for the months ahead.