"These figures show that people across the UK are deeply worried about how their properties will be affected if Britain votes to leave the EU later this month."
But 29% of those who think that prices will decrease believe that it will take ten years or longer for the UK property market to stabilise.
The research from Wellesley Finance found that these fears are particularly pronounced in the capital, as almost three quarters (72%) of Londoners think it will take five years or more for the market to recover. This is also the case in Scotland, where one in five (19%) of those who share the same fears believe that house prices would never return to their current levels.
The study also revealed that concerns about the damage to the property market are most strongly felt amongst Conservative voters, 63% of whom think it will take five years or longer for the value of their homes to return to their current levels.
This is in contrast to UKIP supporters, with just 6% saying it would take over five years to restore any dent in value in properties.
As a result, over a quarter (28%) of 18-24 year olds think that housing will become less affordable if we vote to leave the EU. In comparison, only one in ten (10%) of those aged 65 or older think that this will be the case, and 18% of this age group actually think that affordability will improve.
Graham Wellesley, Founder and CEO of Wellesley Finance, said: “These figures show that people across the UK are deeply worried about how their properties will be affected if Britain votes to leave the EU later this month. We believe that a short term drop in property prices is due to the short term uncertainty. Prices in Central London above £1.5m have seen a slowdown already due to changes in Stamp Duty and the availability of funding. The property market under £1.5m appears to be stronger.
"Buying a home is a huge investment and a major life event for the majority of Britons so is an understandable concern in the upcoming referendum. We cannot know how the property market will react to the results of the vote. As an independent British Business, we are committed to the sustainable future of the nation’s housing market irrespective of the outcome of the referendum. Whilst this survey shows concerns over the impact of Brexit, we believe that in the long run there remains a fundamental mismatch in the supply and demand of housing in the UK. Wellesley aims to facilitate the finance for property developers and house-builders and better Britain as a country, in or out of the common market.”
