Selling your home in the UK? Prepare for a long wait! A new study reveals it takes longer to sell a property in Britain than elsewhere in the world.
Thinking of selling your home? You might want to buckle up for a long wait. New research has revealed that the UK has the slowest property selling process out of 12 major countries – taking almost twice as long as in the USA!
Brits Wait Almost Six Months to Sell
The study, by international moving company Moverly, found that it takes 179 days on average to sell a property in the UK, That’s almost six months!
In comparison, sellers in the USA wait just 53 days on average – that’s less than two months.
UK System “Painfully Sluggish”
Experts blame outdated practices for the UK’s snail-paced property market. Gemma Young, CEO of Moverly, said: “It seems you have to move halfway around the world to access a decent home selling process.”
“The Americans are showing the rest of the world up while the UK is making everyone else look very good! It’s not to say the US model is better, but it’s certainly much faster and we should be doing everything we can to speed up what has become a painfully sluggish journey here in the UK.”
What’s Slowing Things Down?
Young points the finger at outdated conveyancing processes – the legal work involved in buying and selling a home – for the hold-up. She argues that digitising these processes could significantly speed things up.
“Conveyancing is a definite culprit when it comes to delaying the selling process,” she said. “By simply streamlining and digitising many of the conveyancing processes, we have proven that the time to sell can be reduced from up to 70%, which means the UK is perfectly capable of matching the speed of the US market.”
Where Are the Fastest Property Markets?
If you’re looking for a quick sale, it seems heading overseas might be the answer. Here are the countries where homes sell fastest, according to the study:
- USA: 53 days
- UAE: 70 days
- New Zealand: 72 days
- Canada: 90 days
- Australia: 95 days
So, while the UK property market might offer some advantages, if you’re in a hurry to sell, you might find yourself twiddling your thumbs.