U.K. Urges Freeze of Housing Transactions Amid Lockdown
- British homebuyers, sellers urged to suspend property deals
- The move will send volumes plunging to below 2008 crisis level
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The U.K. government has moved to freeze Britain’s housing market, a stunning maneuver in the unprecedented response to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Conservative government urged homebuyers to suspend transactions and agreed with banks to extend mortgage offers when deals are delayed, leaving about 71 billion pounds ($87 billion) of lending commitments in limbo. The move will send volumes plunging below levels seen even in the depths of the global financial crisis, according to analysts.