Optimism in property market as more homes change hands

Confidence appears to be returning to the UK housing market as new figures reveal an increase in the number of homes changing hands.

Following a ‘surprising’ rise in the number of property buyers going through with sales in August irrespective of any uncertainty in the UK housing market following the Brexit vote, fresh data from the Agency Express Property Activity Index has revealed further month-on-month growth in the UK property market in September.

The latest Property Activity Index provided by Agency Express shows that the volume of residential properties ‘sold’ rose by 2.8% in September compared with the previous month, while new listings ‘for sale’ increased by 3.5%.

But while this month’s figures indicate growth, yearly figures show activity in the market is down on September 2015, when the supply of new listings sat at +4.5% and properties ‘sold’ at +6.9%.

However, despite the annual dip in transactions, September’s figures remain robust, especially in light of wider political and economical uncertainty following the Brexit vote.

Looking at regional activity across the rest of the UK, eight of the 12 regions recorded by the Property Activity Index reported growth in both the number of properties ‘sold’ and new listings ‘for sale’.

The regions recording the largest month-on-month increases included:

Properties ‘Sold’

North East +18.3%

Central England +9%

London +8.5%

South East +8.4%

West Midlands +8.2%

East Midlands +8.2%

New listings ‘For Sale’

North East +38.3%

London+19.9%

South East +9.1%

West Midlands +6.4%

Central England +5.6%

The North East was the top performing region in September, reporting an 18.3% year-on-year rise in the number properties ‘sold’ and 38.8% increase in new listings ‘for sale’. 

London followed suit with new listings up 19.9%, however over a three month rolling period figures for the capital were down at -26%.

The largest declines recorded in this month’s Property Activity Index were recorded in Scotland and Wales.

New listings in Scotland sat at -3.6% and properties ‘sold’ at -5.4%, marking the region’s largest decline for September since the Property Activity Index’s first records in 2012.

In Wales, new listings ‘for sale’ dropped for a fifth consecutive month to sit at -10.1% and properties ‘sold’ sat at a record low of -3.9%. However, with news of increased mortgage lending and a rise in consumer confidence the overall outlook for the Welsh property market remains positive.

Commenting on the latest index results, Stephen Watson, managing director of Agency Express, said: “Throughout September an increase in activity across the UK property market is anticipated. The month-on-month figures for September are robust, but in contrast to those recorded 12 months previous we have witnessed less growth.

“As we now move in to the tail end of the year where further seasonal adjustments are expected, it will be interesting to see how the market performs in comparison.”