When is a good time to buy a property?

Published Apr 5, 2019

3 mins read

As property finders we are often asked – ‘when is a good time to buy a property?’ The answer varies depending on several factors and is often unique to each buyer and their plans for the property.

To help decide if now is the right time for you to buy a property we’ve created a short checklist of the top factors we believe you should consider and explain why they’re important.

Purpose

The first factor to consider when deciding if now is the right time for you to buy a property is the purpose of the purchase; why are you buying a property?

In some cases your circumstance will entirely dictate whether you need to buy a home – it might be that you’ve outgrown your current property and need more space. In this instance your circumstance dictates that now is the time to buy and you are under time pressure to purchase a home it is possible to make common home buying mistakes – you can read more on how to avoid these here.

If you’re purchasing a property as an investment, however, whether it’s a buy to let for long term tenants, a holiday let or a property for your child it’s wise to consider other factors before deciding to purchase. In the instance that you’re looking to purchase an investment property we would suggest you consider the other factors at play to decide if the timing is right such as:

The condition of the local market: Are property prices stable? Are there deals to be had?

Access to low interest rates that might be set to increase soon or other factors regarding the financing of your purchase.

Location

We strongly recommend you thoroughly research the location in which you are considering when deciding if now is a good time to buy a property. Plans for regeneration are usually in place long before work begins, as are planned improvements to infrastructure – both important points when considering what the future looks like for an area.

Certain well-established property micro-markets in the most sought after areas do have more resilience than others and tend to hold steady through political and economic uncertainty whereas less established areas can prove to be more volatile and might be a riskier purchase. This said, in many cases the ‘up and coming’ areas can offer investors the greatest potential for long term capital growth.

Deciding if now is a good time to buy in a particular location is largely based on the purpose of your purchase. If you’re purchasing your ‘forever home’ which you expect to live in for 15-20 years the current local market is less likely to stop you from purchasing however if you’re looking for an investment property it’s wise to conduct research to make a well informed decision on a suitable location.

Finances

When buying a property timing can be everything; house prices, interest rates, your cash position are all key factors.

Whilst no one can say for sure when exactly we’re at the ‘bottom of the market’ and there’s never a guarantee that prices won’t falter further, in robust locations we can usually be sure that prices will rise from their current figures at some point in the future, based on previous house price trends.

It can pay to not procrastinate too much, if you’re in a strong position financially and all other factors indicate the timing is right then we’d be inclined to suggest that now is a good time for you to buy a property When depending on lending to purchase a home, the savvy buyer secures financing when interest rates are low.

Seasonal Markets

To some extent the property market is seasonal, away from all other factors we tend to see less activity at the very end of each year which tips over into the first part of the new year.

Whilst there are usually less properties available for sale at this time of the year, the sellers that are on the market are often in a position where they have to sell meaning there might be room for negotiation.

When looking at new builds discounts can sometimes be found at the end of a company’s financial year; if a developer needs to have hit certain numbers they release a certain number of units at a discount.