Finally and as expected, Parliament is to be dissolved, (not literally of course although that could be fun!), and the election date is May 6th.
You could hear the audible sighs of relief from all around the UK as the starting gun was officially sounded on what will no doubt be a close, fiercely fought and no doubt tetchy campaign. I still believe the 3 TV debates will be absolutely key to deciding who will form the next government.
Hopefully once all the uncertainty is out of the way things can start getting back to some semblance of normality and whilst there is a small matter of a few quid deficit to pay back, things tend to move forward once we know exactly what we are dealing with. It is the uncertainty that stifles everything.
In the meantime we can only try to get on with business as usual and whilst purchases may dip slightly before the election this could be replaced with the slowly returning remortgage market. After all, a new government may have new policies that mean interest rates have to rise and fixed rates are very competitive at present.
Competition amongst lenders is still growing nicely and hopefully this is set to continue, although some still harbour fears of a shortage of funds to lend out in the latter stages of the year. If this does begin to happen you can wave goodbye to the really attractive rates available now.
However, we live in hope that this can be averted and careful tranche management by a number of lenders should ensure a steady flow funds throughout the year. Of course, post-election anything can happen, but no government is going to want to see lending to individuals and businesses dry up even further than it already has.
It is interesting to see that Australia has raised it’s interest rates again as it tries to cool the pace of their recovery and keep a lid on the housing market and inflation.
The change in mood can already be felt, May will be here and gone before you know it, finally some decisive action can be taken, the World Cup is also around the corner and by heck it even feels like Spring today.