Cluttons
Cluttons are an old established lettings agent, who have been renting flats in London since goodness knows when (maybe 1765!), and their newsroom brings news about exactly what an odd fragile market we are living through.
They say that despite recent reports that accidental landlords are once again flooding the sales market, Cluttons has not experienced any increase in sales stock of flats because many of these landlords are tied into two and three-year fixed buy to let mortgages, leaving them no option but to continue renting for the time being. Meanwhile lots of potential sellers who would be in a position to move are worried about securing a mortgage on their new London flat at a favourable rate, as a result of reduced income multiples and stricter lending criteria.
It should be of great concern that the London flat market has such a low turnover and that these factors are distorting the natural prices. It’s also a sign of how unnatural the current London flat market is, distorted by oddities from the world of banking.
