Q. Has there been much of an impact on the property market in general with the Bank of England announcing yet another interest rate increase last week?
A. From the very beginning of the year the activity in the Dockland’s property market has been tremendous, so much so, that lack of good quality stock and an abundance of qualified buyers drove the prices up by as much as 15% in the first quarter. Vendors demanding more money just prior to exchange of contracts have become a regular occurrence, with buyers being held to ransom in the majority of cases. However, with the second half of the year now firmly upon us, we have seen a flood of properties hit the market thus switching the market very much into the buyers hands opposed to the sellers market we saw in the first half. Vendors now have to seriously consider offers, as buyers in the driving seat have several options available. The market has now definitely levelled out and although become a little quieter than we have seen, considering we are entering historically our quietest time of the year the interest rate increases do not seem to have had the huge impact on buyers we would have expected. It seems that although somewhat cautious, buyers are confident that the docklands property market is indeed a sound investment and for the moment seem unphased by the continued increases in rates so far this year.