Don’t you wish that just once you could have a sure fire tip about the perfect time to buy and/or sell an investment?

If only you or your parents had known to invest in a small Californian computer start-up company called Apple in 1976. An £800 investment then would be worth over £30 billion today.

Finding these tips and then acting on them is the stuff of legends. But it is still possible to do the right thing at the right time by listening to the right people.

For example, a good estate agent with great local knowledge knows exactly what is happening in the property market. So, if you are thinking of buying or selling your home, a good first move would be to get the best local advice.

And what would we say if you asked us about the market right now? We would say that, following lockdown, we have not seen as buoyant or active a market as this since before the great recession in 2007/8. We would tell you that properly priced property is flying off the shelves. But we would also tell you that the property market is cyclical, and that sometime after this scramble to buy and sell is over, the market will eventually cool – it always does. It cannot stay like this forever.

Finally, we will tell you that now is as near perfect a time to buy and/or sell a property as you are likely to find, and that periods like this only come round every ten years or so. Plus, this time, there is Stamp Duty relief for many home buyers, and the lowest mortgage interest rates in history.

You’ll be pleased to know that we don’t charge for insightful property advice, and while we might not be able to turn £800 into £30 billion for you, we can help you make the most of what is probably your most financially valuable asset.

So, go on, make a legendary move ……………

Harriet Simpson, manager of PFK Estate Agency, Penrith.

I’ve been mulling over this Blog for weeks. Before and After. What? The film starring Meryl Streep? Sadly if today you Google “Before and After” you get dreadful pictures of Beirut and the devastating ammonium nitrate explosion. No, not that either. Before and After Covid-19 would be far too ambitious – I can just remember a time before, but I’m sure there’s a long way to go before we can say “after” Covid. I wanted to write about something much nearer to home in more than one sense of that phrase: about a local property which has been sympathetically improved, enhancing life for the occupiers and fully in keeping with this beautiful part of the world. Unfortunately, we are neither “before” or “after” but still “during” Covid restrictions, and so the work is still awaiting the attention of skilled craftsmen. Well, now you know what I’ll be writing about at some point in the future!

We might not have reached “after” Covid yet but there have certainly been changes in the property market. The Chancellor of the Exchequer has raised the threshold at which stamp duty kicks in to £500,000, to help people move home, save them up to £15,000 in tax, and boost the economy. This will last until the end of March next year. The surcharge for non-owner-occupied properties remains in place but whichever way you look at it, there are savings of up to £15,000 on house purchases in and around Keswick.

My office has recently been insanely busy and we’ve undertaken more valuations in a week than in a typical pre-Covid month. Perhaps I shouldn’t use the word “insanely” because there seem to be a number of good and sane reasons for this upsurge. Obviously people who have been thinking of moving are now motivated by the Chancellor’s generosity, which is exactly what he’d hoped for. And for the first time in my years managing this office we have sufficient numbers of properties coming onto the books to meet demand – for the moment. Perhaps the attractions of living in a more rural and outdoors environment as opposed to urban or suburban locations have also become more apparent during the Covid period. If so, either as a main home or as a holiday home, where better than Keswick to enjoy fell views, good food and drink, wonderful walking and water sports.

On the investment side, bricks and mortar can be viewed as again offering a safer bet than the Stock Market with its high profile Fund Management problems and the FTSE-100 index currently labouring at mid-1990’s level. These are just random reflections of mine so please take professional advice before investing. But, whatever the reasons for the current level of interest in properties in and around Keswick, I’m most certainly busy!

If you are thinking of buying or selling property in this area, the sooner I hear from you, the better. And please stay safe!

Hannah Sims – Manager at PFK Estate Agency, Keswick 

As we head for late summer, Lynne Lancaster, Head of Estate Agency assesses the property market.

Covid19 hasn’t been the only outbreak this year. There has also been an outbreak of property sales and lettings since lockdown. The press has called the current property market a mini boom but we would call it a maxi boom.

Mini booms occur when there is above average activity. Maxi booms happen when buyers are queueing up, there are multiple offers for most properties on the market, and deals regularly go to best and final offers only to exceed the original guide prices. This is what we are currently experiencing.

The lettings sector has not been left out of this frenzy as there also continues to be enormous demand for rental properties.

Our phones have been ringing off the hook, emails have doubled, WhatsApp also and the numbers of visitors to our website and social media pages have skyrocketed.

Many things have changed since the pandemic and one of these changes is in the attitude many of us have in relation to how and where we want to live. The demand continues for more spacious, greener living with the opportunity to have a working space at home.  The temporary reduction in stamp duty has not only helped many second and third time buyers, but it has also helped holiday home and buy-to-let purchasers.

As we head towards late summer our phones continue to ring and there is no let up in demand. We don’t know how long this demand for property will last, but for buyers and sellers right now it is a boom market. So our advice is; strike now whilst the iron is hot.

Arrange your free valuation today by contacting your local PFK office below…

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Lynne Lancaster, head of estate agency, assesses the Chancellor’s stamp duty changes, designed to stimulate the property market.

With demand for property at a welcome high level, one thing was needed to help create what could be the most active market since the great recession and that was greater affordability.

The Chancellor has gone a long way to help through his mini-budget. From 8th July 2020 until 31st March 2021 there will be a temporary stamp duty holiday on the first £500,000 of all property sales in England and Northern Ireland. This does not affect Scotland and Wales, which have their own property transaction tax regimes.

Under Sunak’s change buyers of second homes and buy-to-let properties will also benefit, but they will still have to pay the existing 3% extra duty due on the entire price. During this tax holiday, the average stamp duty bill will fall by £4,500, and almost nine out of ten people buying a main home this year will pay no stamp duty at all. Anyone buying a home for around £475,000 will save almost £14,000 in tax.

We in the property industry have long called for the government to review this tax as it has become a serious hindrance to buyers. Although seen as unfair by many, the government’s annual return from stamp duty is around £12bn – roughly equivalent to 2% of the Treasury’s total tax income. However the Prime Minister has said in the past that he wanted to review duty up to £500,000 and reduce the top rate – on homes costing more than £1.5 million at a suggested reduction from 12% to 7%.

The new stamp duty level and the increased desire by many to make a lifestyle change mean this is the best time for years to buy a property and as any farmer will tell you, make hay while the sun shines.

If you would like any further information, please contact your local PFK office. https://estates.pfk.co.uk/contact/

Lynne Lancaster, Head of Estate Agency, looks at the current impact of our local property market.

The relaxation of the Covid lockdown rules has taken the property industry by surprise, albeit a pleasant surprise. There is an exodus from urban areas to rural locations. As we have previously said more buyers now want open space and extra room at home than they did before the lockdown. Larger houses have suddenly become more popular as buyers look for extra working space – not just for one person but also for two or more people.

Properties that are situated away from major cities are increasingly in demand. Buyers are moving away from commuter belts and the need previously to live close to work.  Now that working from home is the new ‘norm’ they are looking for more expansive homes farther out.

We cover an area of outstanding natural beauty including the Lake District National park and we also cover other areas that provide easy access to it: Carlisle, Cockermouth, Keswick, Kirkby Stephen Penrith and Whitehaven.

It is difficult to say how long this may last however we continue through a safe flexible Covid-19 approach, to help customers find their ideal property and location. Right now just might turn out to be a better time in the property market and with that said all of our offices are happy to help you in relation to any enquiry you may have. Visit our website for your local office’s contact details –  https://estates.pfk.co.uk/contact/

The Covid 19 lockdown was a challenging time for everyone and the buying and selling of houses has been no different. Home moving was initially classed as not essential and we were unable to carry out home visits which in turn meant that buyers and estate agents couldn’t make appointments to view houses in person.  We managed to navigate around this by offering virtual alternatives.

When the government announced the lock down on the 23^rd of March there was a particular group of people immediately effected and it was those who had agreed sales prior to lockdown with completion dates almost imminent. Understandably many of these sales were put on hold due to various reasons like one party being in the high risk category. But what of the chains where all parties wanted to move asap? We had such a chain, where we had first time buyers buying one of our properties in Carlisle, the sellers were then buying a vacant property again through ourselves and everyone was keen to move.

The first thing to do was ascertain, was this even possible within the UK government and law society guidelines? Ourselves and the solicitors reviewed both sets of guidelines and discovered that it would be possible to get everyone moved working to the guidelines set and observing social distancing measures.  The buyers, sellers, solicitors and us as the agents worked alongside one another to make the move happen. It was agreed that the completion could take place and that the sellers of the occupied property would move out of their property after wiping down all surfaces and door handles etc and leaving it vacant for 24 hours.  Those sellers then moved into the vacant property and their first time buyer waited 24 hours before moving into their previously occupied property.

The outcome of this story is that even in the most challenging of times if we work together the right outcomes can be achieved, one of the customers involved in the transaction above sent us this lovely message:

Just wanted to thank you all for selling our home so quickly and getting our purchase completed. From start to finish you were all very helpful and quick to respond to queries and problems involved in our move which was made more stressful with the Covid situation. A professional, friendly, efficient service was provided.