MT Finance polled 215 brokers, of whom 27% thought a recovery would take 12 months or more while a slightly more optimistic proportion – 15% – predicted the return to normal would take less than six months.

However, 40% of those quizzed thought six to nine months would be the more likely timescale in which we would see stronger market fundamentals and recovery.

Gareth Lewis, commercial director at MT Finance said: “These results offer an interesting insight into just how long those working in the industry believe the UK property market and wider economy will take to recover.

“An overnight recovery does not look likely, with most predicting it will take at least six to nine months to happen.”

Lending levels

FT Finance’s latest Broker Sentiment Survey also revealed the majority of brokers – 34% – thought lending levels would return to pre-Covid levels within the six to nine month time frame.

This was despite issues with lenders reallocating resources to deal with mortgage payment holidays and with some finding it challenging to cope with the demand for higher loan-to-value (LTV) products.

Over a third of brokers questioned said lender appetite was proving a hurdle for them during the pandemic with a similar number admitting support from third parties – such as surveyors and solicitors – was a problem.

Sourcing products

Just over a fifth said they had issues with transactional volumes. However, 40% said their prominent source of difficulty was in sourcing a suitable product for their client.

Another 20% of brokers said underwriting timescales were an issue, followed by the logistics of satisfying legal requirements while maintaining social distancing rules at 15%.

Only 6% of brokers revealed consumer confidence was the biggest challenge they were facing. MF Finance said this suggested buyers and sellers were keen to get on and move.

The economy

However MT Finance discovered,brokers were not quite so optimistic about the economy as they were about the property market and lending levels.

Over half thought the economy would stagnate for six to 12 months but would show growth after and 14% of brokers thought the economy would fall into another recession.

Meanwhile, 51% thought the Government was doing enough to get businesses moving forward, with 54% believing the Furlough Scheme was having a positive impact on the financial services industry.

Lewis added: “While the Government’s Furlough Scheme has evidently had a positive impact on unemployment some further Government stimulus would be very welcome to resurrect the property market once lockdown is lifted, such as a stamp duty holiday or concessions.”