Green shoots for house sellers?

Now, suddenly, they are a little more upbeat about their chances of selling it — after more than 70 viewings and a drop in price from £465,000 to £375,000.

Like the weather — the onset of Winter, or the arrival of Spring — things change so fast in this financial crisis that its hard to know how to adapt; what to wear, as it were.

Ten days ago, for instance, Mr and Mrs Griffin were despondent. They told me they were going to take their house off the market, let it out (if they could), and fly south to Spain to weather the economic storm in the sun — and save on heating fuel as the current downturn hits its much-predicted nadir next winter.

But before they could ring the estate agent, he rang them. And in the past week they have had no fewer than ten viewings — all of them “serious”.

Fingers crossed, their experience tallies with uncertain signs that buyers, nationally, are at last beginning to find it easier to borrow. According to figures from the Bank of England, the number of home loan approvals increased nearly 20 per cent to 37,937 in February, up from 31,791 in January, and above the six-month average of 31,495. The figures were cautiously welcomed by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) who said they represented the first material improvement since the middle of last year.

CML economist Paul Samter said: "This is welcome news, but we will need to see a few more months’ figures before we can say with any confidence that market conditions are showing a fundamental improvement. Transactions remain historically very weak."

In fact, despite the hopeful signs, actual transactions remained stubbornly few. In February there were just 42,000 completed transactions in England and Wales, slightly higher than in January but still only half the level seen a year ago.

But could the Griffins’ experience show that some sort of corner has been turned since then?

Predictably enough, Oxfordshire estate agents are answering that question with a loud yes — but then they would, wouldn’t they?

However, Mrs Griffin said her recent experience seemed to back up agents’ claims.

She said: “Our agent, RA Bennett, told me he had sold four houses last week alone.”

Oxfordshire agents are quick to point out that the February figures from the Land Registry (the latest available) show a smaller annual drop, at 13.4 per cent, for the county, than the national figure of 16.5 per cent.

Nationally, the average price of a house fell to £153,862, the lowest since September 2004; in Oxfordshire the average price dropped to £218,947, down £4,478 on the January figure — which means, I suppose, that the wealth of the average home-owner in the county has fallen by that amount.

Hardly encouraging for the feel-good factor necessary to get us all out spending again, but estate agents refuse to be despondent.

Huw Warren, of Savills’ North Oxford office, said there had been an overall return to stability for the Oxfordshire housing market and prices could have bottomed out.

He added: “The final quarter of last year was a pretty terrifying time when we were not sure what was happening with prices.

“Now there are a lot of people out there looking and our sales are 50 per cent higher than this time last year.

“You are getting more property for your money than 12 months ago and for those looking to move up the ladder there is a great opportunity.”

And there of course, is the crux of the matter, as far as potential buyers are concerned — even those lucky cash buyers.

Is now the time to pounce? Has the market really hit rock bottom?

Mrs Griffin said: “In the past we have had potential cash buyers who then pulled out because they thought the market would fall further.

“But this time it looks as if things are getting better and some London people with money are deciding that now is the time to make a move.

“Second-home buyers seem to be back on the scene, and some people are telling us that they are thinking of buying property because interest rates are so low and they have to put there money somewhere.”

Low interest rates have been good for some sellers. Without them, obviously, forced sales and repossessions would have soared and prices dropped even faster than they have.

But here is a surprising twist to what is going on: some chains of buyers and sellers are getting longer (and therefore holding up transactions) because people want to hang on to their near-zero interest rate deals.

Take the case of Nick Ellacott, for instance, who wants to move up the housing ladder to accommodate his larger family. His house in Kidlington has been on the market for 18 months.

Now, sure enough, a cash buyer has come along.

But the problem for Mr Ellacott is: how can he find another home to move into and still keep his low rate mortgage? Were he to move out and rent somewhere, he would lose it.

He said: “It’s a weird situation. Suddenly, finding myself to be a buyer, not a seller, I am discovering that sellers are still holding out for higher prices and then finding that deals fall through. I am not surprised that Land Registry figures show a drop in actual transactions.

“We have accepted £50,000 less for our house, and the flip side of that should be that we will find a larger house for about £80,000 less than was asked last year.”

So here is hoping that the increase in activity on the market will translate itself into actual sales for both Mr and Mrs Griffin and the Ellacotts. We wish them luck!