Wetherell

Homeowners might be suffering in some parts of the country - but in Mayfair, London, properties are exchanging hands at record prices. There, a newly refurbished three-bedroom, three-bathroom flat on Mount Street has just sold for £4.83m.

House prices dipped in June as rising mortgage rates made it increasingly difficult for cash-strapped first-time buyers to secure home loans, according to new figures published today.

Once again the old adage of "location, location, location" seems to be back in Fashion! The rental market is very buoyant at present and in the last 6 months Wetherell has had a 15% increase in new enquiries and viewings, mainly from tenants wanting to see what is happening in the sales market.

Picture a Formula One race track. Now imagine that the housing market is a car and mortgage lenders are the driver; Jenson Button, for argument's sake. A bend has just come into view. If they take it too fast, the market could career off course; too slow, and there is a risk of losing valuable ground or stalling.

It isn't exactly a dam waiting to burst but it is an unexpected side effect of the extraordinary times we live in – a backlog of pent-up property sales. These are cases where buyers have made offers and sellers have accepted them, but the buyers can't get mortgage finance or sell their own home in order to move on. The deals are done but they are paralysed by the economy.