When the first lockdown happened in March 2020, the property market more or less ground to a halt, and there were many obstacles to moving. By summer, things were coming back to life, greatly helped by the Chancellor announcing the Stamp Duty Holiday and this still applies until 31st March 2020, therefore anyone who can complete a purchase by then stands to benefit.
It seems that intermittent lockdowns may become a fact of life in the short term, but the difference now is that the housing market remains open for business. Mask-wearing, sanitising and social distancing have become a part of everyday life for us all, and property professionals such as developer sales teams, estate agents, surveyors and valuers now know the rules to follow to keep themselves and their clients safe.
At the beginning of January, the Government updated its guidelines for moving house, to include the following advice. Most is just common sense, but bears repeating.
Viewings should be virtual whenever possible, particularly during the early stages of your search.
When viewing a property in person, or visiting an agent’s office, masks should be worn at all times and social distancing observed.
Viewings should also be by appointment only.
You should avoid touching surfaces if possible and sanitise your hands.
The guidelines also recommend doing as much packing yourself as you can, to avoid having removal staff in your home for long periods of time.
There’s more information available on the gov.uk website, please see the link at the end of the article.
At Consero we have put into place all the necessary measures to meet the challenges of the COVID pandemic. The safety of our customers, staff and suppliers of the utmost importance.
Visiting our sites, sales and marketing suites is currently by appointment only: only two adults per appointment – and sorry, no children under the age of 18. We ask that you wear a mask and maintain social distancing. We provide hand sanitiser and ask you to apply it on entering our sites. In everyone’s interest, our Sales Consultants will not accompany you into a show home for a viewing, and rest assured that show homes are thoroughly sanitised after every appointment. If you prefer not to visit in person, we can offer telephone appointments and virtual viewings.
Take a more in-depth look at each of our developments at our new homes page.
