Phil Spencer property

Channel 4’s Phil Spencer gives his view of the property market…

Is the housing market set to continue booming – or go to bust?

Channel 4’s Location, Location, Location is one of our favourite TV programmes – and here Phil Spencer gives his view… First up is there a housing price bubble at the moment?

Phil Spencer property
Phil Spencer

“The bubble? I think it’s an urban myth,” says the 44 year old developer and presenter, “Just the use of the world bubble implies that it can pop, and I don’t agree with that.

“Okay, so the price rises that were taking place earlier in the summer cannot continue. The market was as busy as I’ve ever seen it but that doesn’t mean it’s all going to come crumbling down. The statistics towards the end of the summer did show that the market was slowing, but they always do. The spring is traditionally the busiest time of the year and it happened again this year.

“That the statistics revealed that it slowed down in the summer was absolutely no surprise to me. It was bound to happen and it did happen, and it doesn’t mean the whole thing is going to come crashing down. People can relax, I think.”

Over the years – 10 of them, and 20 series of Location, Location, Location, Phil and property partner Kirstie Allsopp have undertaken all manner of property challenges, yet arguably their most difficult came just a few months ago.

“The London show we did for the new series was incredible. We were in Walthamstow in the east end of London. I had an appointment to show somebody a house on a Tuesday morning – it had gone on the market the previous Saturday. They had 57 viewings and on the Monday 12 offers had been submitted. There was no way they were going to show it to me and my clients on the Tuesday morning – it was gone.

“So that was a fairly tough reflection of what market conditions can be like at the moment, but there are still great deals out there if you do your own investigations away from the estate agents, or at very least get into the estate agents early. Never wait for stuff to come on the internet – it’s arguably too late for the really good properties.”

While Phil’s work takes him through a flood of different house designs and styles every week, away from the television cameras his taste is rather more serene.

“Well my dream residence would be very symmetrical Queen Anne style house. It wouldn’t be massive and there wouldn’t be lots of rooms but they would be big with high ceilings with lots of light and windows. It would be architecturally a period house but I would renovate it in a fairly modern, contemporary way whilst maintaining the period features. That’s quite a delicate balance to find between the old and the new.”

And does Phil have time to pursue this dream abode?

“God no, I’m far too busy solving others’ problems!”

Phil Spencer is working with nationwide consumer brand Compare The Market in encouraging people to take the leap and switch insurance providers before the cold months draw in. After all, if there’s anything to compensate for the wicked winter chill that lays ahead, it’s the warming knowledge that we’re spending less on the insurance that keeps our households running should anything go wrong.

“I’m always behind campaigns and ideas that enable people to save money, no matter what area that’s in – from first-time buyers looking to get on the ladder to those looking to downsize after the kids have left home.

“At the end of the day, anything that helps to strengthen neighbourhood relationships and community spirit must be good.”

Take part in the Great British Switch on 12th-14th September at comparethemarket.com/greatbritishswitch and vote for a local charity to be awarded £50,000.  

Have you got a buying or selling a house story to sell to a national newspaper or magazine? Contact us here.

 

Alison Smith-Squire

Alison Smith-Squire is a writer, journalist and media agent selling exclusive real life stories to newspapers, magazines and TV. She owns the sell my story website Featureworld.co.uk, which was set up to help ordinary people sell their stories to the press.

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