Many brokers I have spoken to have noted a sudden slowdown in activity around October. Following a relatively lively year it seems that the budget is the key driver in an earlier than usual slowdown in activity.

This article based on newly released data from Zoopla puts some perspective on this and highlights some interesting statistics:

• Latest quarter sales activity down a significant 8%
• High value property, i.e. over £500k the most affected as concerns over potential tax changes bite.
• Long pipelines are still a huge factor, a record 350,000 properties are still in the conveyancing process, with the average completion time being 5-6 months

Is there good news here? Possibly, there will be those who need to sell and so there may well be some good deals to be had, house price inflation is settling which overall is a good thing for the market, especially first time buyers who will want to see their weages catch up with mortgage prices, and the settling of interest rates provide more stability and scope to plan for the future.