Continued on next page... 5 supply side, the number of homes available for sale has increased across much of the UK, reportedly the highest level in eleven years, with roughly 6% more properties on the market than at the same point last year. That gives buyers more choice, but it also means sellers need to be realistic on price and brokers need to manage expectations on timescales, since more choice tends to lengthen the decision-making process rather than shorten it. Demand tells a more nuanced story. House price growth remains modest but positive, with Nationwide reporting annual growth of 1.6% in August, Halifax close to flat at 0.1%, and the ONS showing a stronger 2.0% to June, the first time in several quarters that the major indices have broadly agreed with one another. First-time buyers continue to face the sharpest squeeze on the demand side. Suitable stock for first-time buyers accounts for only around 1.7% of all homes currently listed, down from 2.1% at the start of the year, and the proportion of first-time buyer homes selling subject to contract eased to 32.9% in the second quarter. That is a real constraint, and one where your advice, particularly on schemes and product innovation, continues to add tangible value. On the supply side longer term, housebuilding starts in England rose 23% quarter on quarter and 24% year on year in the final quarter of last year, which should gradually add stock through 2027, even if it does little to ease the squeeze this year. As ever, the regulatory agenda shows no sign of easing. Consumer Duty remains a live, ongoing obligation rather than a box ticked in 2023, with the requirement to continue to embed it into product reviews, fair value assessments and client communications. I think it is appreciated it touches everything from how a recommendation is evidenced to how clearly a product's costs and risks are explained, and that scrutiny is only becoming more embedded in day-to-day practice rather than less. Alongside that, wider market shifts, including the Renters' Rights Act reshaping parts of the private rented sector, are changing the environment in which landlord clients operate, with knock-on implications for buy-to-let advice, tenancy structures and the calculations landlords need to run before deciding whether to stay in the market at all. "Consumer Duty remains a live, ongoing obligation rather than a box ticked in 2023." We at Paradigm appreciate none of this is comfortable to sit through as a compliance workload. Documentation requirements, file evidencing and ongoing suitability reviews all add time and cost to your working week, at exactly the point when client volumes and case complexity are also rising. But it is worth holding onto the underlying purpose: a regulatory framework built around fair treatment and good outcomes is also a framework that supports trust in advice, at a time when trust is precisely what clients are looking for from their broker. Firms that treat the requirements as a genuine discipline, rather than a paperwork exercise, tend to find the two things reinforce each other: Housing Supply Homes for sale at their highest levels in 11 years +6% More properties on the market than this time last year Housing Demand at a Glance: 1.6% Nationwide, annual growth 0.1% Halifax, annual growth 2.0% ONS, annual growth to June 1.7% Share of listings suitable for first-time buyers (down from 2.1%)
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