The BBC’s popular show Homes Under the Hammer and a big stamp-duty saving are fuelling demand
It’s the 17-year stalwart of daytime TV, famous for revealing the hidden potential of dilapidated properties and the rapacious profits of the punters bold enough to buy them at auction. Now, Homes Under the Hammer is being credited with fuelling a new boom in the property market, as auctioneers report a sharp increase in sales and bidders – particularly for family homes – during the pandemic.
Savills says it has sold property worth more than £240m at auction this year, almost 40% higher than the same period in 2019, while last week Auction House announced it had sold £65m worth of property in October alone, a new record. Auctioneer John Pye Property said the total value of properties it sold between May and October this year was 126% higher than that achieved during the same period last year. The number of bidders at its auctions also rose by 52%.
