As we approach the first 100 days of 2025, I can't help but wonder if we're all stuck in some sort of property market Groundhog Day.
We seem to wake up to another headline about 'revolutionary' housing initiatives most days, which is great except so far, we’re yet to see any impact.
If only solving the housing crisis were as simple as repeating buzzwords at dispatch boxes.
I regularly witness the real-world impact of property policies, and I can tell you that the fundamental issues remain stubbornly unchanged.
The housing market is in crisis, an expert claims
PA/GETTYWe're still dealing with a planning system that moves at the speed of the average glacier and young buyers are getting older and older as the years go by – the average age up by five years in recent times.
And yet prices continue to rise, slower than we consider ‘normal’, but rising nonetheless. This puts the dream of home ownership out of the reach of more people as the months pass.
The economy's growth rate of a measly 0.3 per cent in the first quarter doesn’t fill anyone with confidence but at least it may encourage downward pressure on interest rates. That will be good news.
What's particularly interesting (at least for a property nerd like me) is how we continue to ignore some of the obvious solutions. Over a quarter of a million empty homes, employment opportunities mostly where people cannot afford to live, and, of course, a population that is growing so fast, it eats up any net gain from building.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
Jonathan Rolande shares his opinions JONATHAN ROLANDEWages are increasing - that is true - but does anyone actually feel that benefit given the huge pressures on family finances? Meanwhile, the average first-time buyer now needs to cobble together a deposit that would have bought an entire house in 1995.
The issue isn't just the crisis itself - it's our seemingly infinite capacity to avoid dealing with it effectively. We've become masters at the art of looking busy while standing still.
As we look ahead to the remaining 265 days of 2025, I can't help but wonder, will we ever actually see meaningful changes to our housing market? Or will we continue our national tradition of treating the property crisis as if it is inevitable?
One thing's certain: if we continue at this pace, we'll be having the same conversation this time next year.
Jonathan is the founder of House Buy Fast. For more information visit www.housebuyfast.co.uk
