Water and leisure spring market update
Throughout the first quarter of 2021, the increased market activity which was a feature of 2020 has continued with several factors contributing to this. Looking back over the past 12 months, since the pandemic struck it is the clear the number of lifestyle property buyers has increased. This is a trend which has mirrored the increase in demand for domestic holiday accommodation in recent years. COVID-19 has, in our view, accelerated this resulting in increased buyer activity and prices for certain property types.
Most of the leisure property types which operate a business are classed as ‘non-residential or mixed use’ for stamp duty land tax purposes. Therefore, although most of the property transactions we are involved with do not qualify for the government’s ‘Stamp duty Holiday’. However, buyers have been capitalising on zero residential Stamp Duty rates to sell their properties temporary relief measure, first announced by the Government on 8th July last year, means that a residential property buyer making a purchase of up to £500,000 will not pay any Stamp Duty.
Tom Good, Associate Partner at Fenn Wright commented “There has been a reduction in supply of new properties to the market over the first quarter of 2021. In our opinion, this is primarily due to operators of domestic leisure and tourism businesses anticipating a busy year ahead, following the trend from 2020 for staycations and current difficulties with foreign travel. This increased demand will present a good opportunity for those who do decide to sell in 2021, with a concentrated pool of buyers and a relative shortage of available property.”
At least 70% of lifestyle buyers in the market need to sell a residential property, be it their own or a buy-to-let. The Stamp Duty holiday has enabled many buyers to capitalise on the increased activity in the residential sector and put them in a better position to make an offer, when the right property becomes available. Some purchasers have taken the decision to move into rented accommodation in order to reduce the number of links in a chain, to become more flexible and ultimately more attractive to a vendor.
Below are a selection of properties sold by Fenn Wright this year:
- South View Lake, Lincolnshire – A luxury holiday lodge overlooking a lake with planning permission for 5 additional lodges.
- Lakeside, Norfolk – A private residential property and small estate comprising woodland, grounds and a number of former coarse fishing lakes.
- Oasis Lakes – Lincolnshire – A successful lifestyle business comprising of a coarse fishery, 27 pitch touring caravan site and owner’s accommodation.