Leading estate agency Knight Frank says the fate of the housing market this year may depend on what Donald Trump (main picture) declares about the war in the Middle East.

Tom Bill, who is Head of UK Residential Research at Knight Frank, claims the length of the conflict with Iran will dictate the impact on the market.

“How long the Middle East conflict lasts will determine the impact on the housing market and the fiscal choices in the autumn Budget,” he says.

“Spare a thought for anyone sitting on a mortgage pricing committee this week.

“The job of setting loan terms must be challenging when the number of rate cuts on the horizon moves around so dramatically in such a short space of time.”

Spare a thought for anyone sitting on a mortgage pricing committee this week.”

Best steer

And he points to the President as the best source of an idea on what will unfold.

“For the best steer on what happens next, committee members should perhaps be monitoring the social media feed of US President Donald Trump.

“Everything, including the impact on UK inflation, hinges on the length of the current conflict, but his latest comments on when it would end were ambiguous. Soon, but not this week, was the gist.

“As a result, drawing longer-term conclusions about what the conflict means for the UK housing market is not straightforward.”

Turbulent

The mortgage market is now becoming as turbulent as it was following the Liz Truss mini-Budget, which saw loan rates jump dramatically, according to Moneyfacts.

The data comparison firm said there are worrying trends among mortgage offers that resemble the disastrous effects of the infamous mini-Budget in 2022 delivered by Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng.

And major lenders are raising their mortgage rates as the war starts to impact the economy.

Source: thenegotiator