The lockdown period is likely to have caused many people to dwell on the limitations of their current living space and perhaps reprioritise what they value the most. We anticipate people will place more value than ever before on their own outside space. This will particularly apply to those who have been living in city or town centres with limited or even no access to the outdoors. 

Over recent years we have noticed a real change in demand for properties which can sustain multi-generations of families living at the same property, typically attracting a more premium price. The popularity of properties with either existing facilities or showing the potential to extend or convert/develop an outbuilding into an annexe has already been surging, but now we expect to see this demand to increase further. We have supported a number of clients through the planning process to achieve this before a property is sold and even worked with new homes developers who have modified their plans (e.g. changing garage designs to include an annexe above) to meet local demand. Please contact our Land & New Homes team if you wish to discuss this type of situation further. 

For those with some space available, there has also been a recognisable shift in the number of people growing their own food from small potted herbs to root vegetables, keeping hens for eggs, or even livestock. There seems to be a greater awareness around how and where food is produced, encouraging people to turn to local or even their own sources. We expect this to continue as people strive to be more self sufficient and the space to achieve it will be a higher priority than it perhaps was 6 months ago. 

Busy supermarkets, travel restrictions, long queues and stock shortages also encouraged more people to start seeking out local suppliers. As huge supporters of our local communities it has been humbling to witness some of our nearby producers, suppliers and retailers adapting so well to the changes. The importance of British farmers for keeping the population fed with less reliance on imported goods will hopefully reinforce the need to support our local producers now and in the future. From people we have spoken to, there is an overall feeling that many people are feeling healthier from sourcing fresh local produce and enjoying home cooked meals. We hope the support to these local businesses and this healthier approach to sourcing and cooking food continues. Please click here for our previous feature on how and where to buy local produce to #helpkentsupportlocal.

We also anticipate people in London, particularly families, will be reviewing the comparative value of properties in a city location versus what you can buy for a similar value in the home counties surrounding the city. Some areas could potentially add very little to the commuting time when you consider routes available on high speed train networks. For example, with journey times from Ashford International to London St Pancras in just 36 minutes there has already been a shift of people taking this step for a better quality of life. This is even more the case with more businesses recognising the ease, convenience and possibilities of working from home more, putting less pressure on people to live near their place of working if the daily commute is reduced to attending the office just a couple of times a week. Early figures from Zoopla showed that searches for rural property had overtaken urban property searches so we will continue to monitor how that manifests.

Another important realisation from this period of lockdown is that more people (than perhaps was anticipated) and businesses can operate effectively with staff working remotely. The use of video meeting technology had always been common practice for some but is now the norm for most. Cutting out non-essential travel for work and meetings has also had a positive impact on the environment with a noticeable reduction in pollution levels. Moving forwards, we would expect more flexible working location patterns to emerge across businesses, placing more value on facilities at home such as a home office space. This further supports why we expect to see more people moving to more rural areas in search of more space as although it might add some commuting journey time, if there is only a need to be in the office a couple of days a week for reasons just mentioned the priority will be on qualify of life over convenience to get to work.  

We suspect investors are likely to view property and land purchases as a more stable investment than stock markets and overseas projects. The South-East has been on the radar for investors over recent years but we expect this to continue.

With recent situation has caused disappointment for many home movers with risk of job losses, furlough and redundancies causing chains to fall apart. The new homes market is in a good stead because of the lack of chains and has picked up strongly. The Government backed Help to Buy Scheme is coming to an end so there will be a boost of people taking advantage of that before it is changed in 2021.

Mortgage holidays have taken up lenders attention over the last few months but they do have money to lend and will be encouraged to do so to keep the economy moving so there will be opportunities available. To speak to one of our recommended independent mortgage partners about mortgage products available please get in touch with us to talk through your requirements and we can assist with a no-obligation assessment of what could be suitable for you.