It's that time of year when many people in the property profession give their opinion as to what to expect for the coming 12 months.

Having been involved in the sale of properties for nearly 38 years it's fair to say that I have seen my fair share of predictions during that time and have always shied away from giving my own.

Buty as they say, if you ask people to give their opinion then the chances are one of them may well be correct. So here are my thoughts on what could happen during 2024.

Without doubt the type of property that has proven more difficult to sell than any other during the past 12 months has been tenanted flats, due to the lower number of investor landlords who are in the market for these types of investments at the moment.

Challenging

Based on this, I would expect more of the same for 2024. There are still many people who are yet to come off their competitive fixed rate mortgages, and for some, the significant rise in their monthly repayments when they do so, will prove extremely challenging, and they will be looking to exit the market quickly.

I would anticipate that interest rates will stay at current levels as the government has not yet achieved its target inflation figure and has stated repeatedly that they will use increased interest rates to reduce inflation.

Being an investor landlord has lost its appeal to many over the last 12 months and the reduced number of buyers will continue to squeeze pricing in this sector.

There will, most likely, be a general election in 2024, how this affects purchasers’ appetite to buy, only time will tell.

The one thing we have no control over is the confidence that the public has in the market at any given moment in time, and of course, confidence is the key to a strong market.

Richard Worrall is an auctioneer and President of NAVA Propertymark