As we went to print on this issue of Mortgage Strategy, the country was waiting with both hope and trepidation for a government announcement on an easing of the lockdown restrictions.

The nation is longing for some indication that things will soon return to ‘normal’. We are desperate to hug our friends and family, head out to pubs and restaurants – and, let’s be honest, have a break from the kids!

But it’s also clear, if restrictions are removed too abruptly, we could find ourselves back in the same situation before long. Nobody wants to see the death toll rise again or the NHS put under increased pressure. Lockdown hasn’t been easy but the majority of people have put a great deal of effort into sticking to it and it would be awful to see that good work undone. We will move on from this period; it won’t define us but it is part of who we are now – and that can be a good thing.

We have learned to appreciate our loved ones and the small pleasures in life that many of us overlooked before the virus hit. And, for the most part, we have learned patience and understanding of the challenges others have faced in their working lives, as we’ve faced them ourselves. It would be a better working world for us all if we held on to this new empathy.

In the mortgage world, inevitably things will have changed in some ways. The feeling among those I’ve spoken to is that remote working will be increasingly common because it has now been proven it can be done successfully. Hopefully this will create a better work/life balance and enable more time with loved ones.

There won’t be an immediate bounce-back of the mortgage market but things will start moving again and, as suggested in this month’s cover feature, government incentives such as the removal of stamp duty on house purchases could encourage a faster recovery. No, it won’t be business as usual for some time. All we can do is try to take lessons from this unprecedented period to help us move forward in a post-Covid world.