the economy and housebuilding

You don’t need to have watched the news every day to know that it’s been like reading the doomsday book. In reality, the media may have been gloomier than they needed to be. In fact, despite miserable predictions for our economy in 2023, it hasn’t been as awful as predicted. For starters, we;

• Had a surprise economic growth of 0.1% in November, which resulted in the likelihood that we have managed to avoid a recession in 2022. While we are not out of the woods yet for 2023, this good piece of news does show the resilience of the UK’s services sectors and continual public spending.
• Saw interest mortgage rates drop from 6.50% in October (2-year fixed mortgage) to 5.04% in January. At present, a five-year fixed mortgage is 4.60%. And while this is far from the 2% interest rates we saw in 2021, the decreased rates do offer some hope for a levelling of rates in 2023. Economists are hoping that this year will see the economy settle which will allow the Bank of England to ease the pressure in raising rates.
• Learnt from the ONS that average house prices in the UK grew by 10.3% in the year to November 2022. While this data may be historic, according to property experts it forecasts a steadier market with prices going in the right direction.

What does all this mean for the housebuilding industry? Well, this positive news shows that while there are still challenges ahead a stabilizing of our economy and housing will have a positive impact on housebuilders, buyers, and those of us who work in the property sector. Basically, don’t believe all the gloominess you hear in the paper as we’re a resilient bunch.

If you’re on the lookout for an exciting new role with a company whose values match your own – then look at our current jobs page as we work with loads of fantastic, value-driven organisations.