What a difference a week makes in the property market! One minute it’s all doom and gloom, the next everything is coming up roses.
Last week, for instance, estate agents were reeling from the double whammy of house prices falling for the seventh month in a row (according to housing intelligence firm Hometrack) and figures from the British Bankers’ Association showing new mortgage lending dropping to an 11-and-a-half-year low.
Then, to cheer us all up, this week got off to a totally different start with the revelation in the latest Halifax House Price Index that property prices in the South West have almost doubled in the last ten years.
It is the latter trend that keeps things in perspective because it serves to remind us that, when it comes to long-term investment, you can’t do much better than to put your money into bricks and mortar.
True, we can’t bury our heads in the sand by ignoring the bad news, of course, but we should not talk the market down and wallow in self pity.
So, instead of worrying about falling house prices and low mortgage lending, let’s take heart from the fact that, not only have property prices in the region increased by 89 per cent since 2000, but that Bristol has the highest
proportion of home sales in the country (source The Land Registry).
Yes, let’s follow Eric Idle’s advice and, in the words of his popular song, “always look on the bright side of life” whenever the market gives us the opportunity.
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