Voting Intentions

Arlington & Hall takes a personal view on moving home in this time of both political, and economic, uncertainty.

Which way will you vote? Will you vote to move home before or after the election?

All decisions have consequences, naturally. And all big decisions have consequences. Buying and selling property is certainly a big decision. Answers to questions like this are best made on the basis of what you know.

So what do we know? We know that Britain is a nation of homeowners, that we have the lowest interest rates ever and lenders have entered a mortgage rate war, bringing some incredible deals to the market. We know that, as salaries rise, so does the affordability to move home and that it is now often cheaper to buy a property than it is to rent.
We know also that we are more optimistic about the economic future, and therefore our own financial futures, than we have been since the dark depths of '08. Finally, we know that property stock levels are the lowest for many years and while that should put upward pressure on prices it hasn't because of what we don't know.

We don't know who will be in Downing Street after 7th May. So we don't know what sort of country we will be living in following the election. We don't know how far the current improvement in the economy will take us, nor the effect that the three headed monster crisis of Eurozone, the Ukraine and the Middle East will have over time. Nor do we know how much a mansion tax would affect the UK property market. It would also be helpful if we knew how long our current low interest rates will prevail. But we have no way of knowing.

One thing estate agents have always known is that many fewer people would move if residential properties were simply viewed as commodities. But residential properties, certainly around here, are certainly not commodities. They are homes, they are dream homes, they are aspirational. And despite what is going on in the world, at the hearts of our lives, our families, are our homes. They are no speculation, they are human necessity and the heart of everything.

If your voting intention to move is clouded by indecision you are not alone. But in my view one thing is certain; home trumps the UK economy, current affairs, 'dodgy' politicians, terrorists, tax evaders, devolution and the oil industry. Home is where the heart is and if this is the right time to find a new home then now is the right time to move - despite what is going on in the rest of the world or who might be grinning broadly at us from the steps of Number Ten on 8th May.