Government needs to be proactive over housing

The government should be taking a far more proactive approach to the UK property market in a bid to help revitalise it at a time when there are many people who simply cannot afford to buy properties for sale, or do not see the venture as financially viable.

Nick Marr, director at the Little House Company, said that the fact there still remains a level of economic uncertainty in the EU as a whole means that there is always going to be a degree of slowing in the property market.

He added that the government's austerity measures, as well as underlying factors which make it harder for people to feel confident about the housing market as a whole mean that the sector is hit badly at the moment.

And the expert has called on the government to step in and help out to make a real difference to the way in which it is performing.

"We need some proactive action from the government to kick start the housing market because when people see activity they will feel more confident about entering the market," he said.

It has previously been reported that some of the confidence seen in the market in the past has started to dwindle because of the end of the stamp duty holiday in March. This meant that first-time buyers could afford to buy a house without having to pay a one per cent levy on the cost of their homes.

When this ended though, there was a huge reduction in the number of first timers looking to enter the market because they did not feel they could afford it.

It has, however, been reported this week that there are now far more people buying homes this year than there were at the same time 12 months ago.
Connells has reported that in May of this year alone, there were 7.2 per cent more people buying houses in the UK than there were during the same month a year ago.