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Property supply down as sellers ‘scared off’
The number of homes for sale was down 1.9% across the UK in June, according to online estate agency HouseSimple.com’s Property Supply Index.
Of the 100 towns and cities analysed, 81% of areas saw property supply fall in June compared to May. Dundee and Barnsley registered the biggest drop offs in supply, down 48.1% and 39.3% last month.
Of the few areas that saw a rise in new listings in June, Lichfield and Hartlepool registered gains of 20.6% and 18.7% respectively.
London also bucked the trend, with a 5.3% uplift. Sutton stood out, with new property listings in June up by more than half (54.1%) compared to May.
House Simple suggested that the general election result, coupled with Brexit uncertainty, scared off sellers. With price growth stalling in many areas, the predicted post-Election spike in new property listings did not materialise, as homeowners chose to stick rather than sell.
Chief executive Alex Gosling said: “The supply drought continues. The property market was hoping for a downpour of new stock in June, but the Conservatives crawling over the line failed to deliver the injection of confidence the market needed, and put paid to any chance of a late spring bounce.
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“Price growth has stalled, and sellers, it appears, are choosing to stay put, rather than accept marketing their properties at a lower price then they might have done a few months ago.”
Gosling said sellers may need “a dose of reality” because the housing market was inevitably going to cool at some point.
“If sellers are waiting for prices to go up again, that could be a long wait. If anything, homeowners should see this as a good climate to sell as long as they price correctly. If prices have dropped where they live, they are likely to have dropped, possibly by even more, in the area they’re planning to buy.”
The 10 UK towns and cities that experienced the biggest decreases in new property listings in June versus May:
| Town/City | Region | % fall in new listings in June vs. May |
| Dundee | Scotland | -48.1% |
| Barnsley | South Yorkshire | -39.3% |
| Sunderland | North East | -25.2% |
| Torquay | South West | -25.1% |
| Hereford | West Midlands | -24.5% |
| Slough | South East | -23.8% |
| Hemel Hempstead | East | -22.1% |
| Bolton | North West | -21.5% |
| Ipswich | East | -21.1% |
| Rotherham | South Yorkshire | -20.6% |
The 10 UK towns and cities that experienced the biggest increases in new property listings in June versus May:
| Town/City | Region | % rise in new listings in June vs. May |
| Lichfield | West Midlands | 20.6% |
| Hartlepool | North East | 18.7% |
| Peterborough | East | 17.2% |
| Cambridge | East | 16.4% |
| Southampton | South East | 13.4% |
| Hull | East Yorkshire | 12.9% |
| Gateshead | North East | 12.3% |
| Aberdeen | Scotland | 12.1% |
| Warwick | West Midlands | 11.9% |
| Oldham | North West | 11.6% |
London boroughs which saw the biggest rise in property supply in June:
| London Borough | % rise in new listings in June vs. May |
| Sutton | 54.1% |
| Barnet | 15.3% |
| Lewisham | 15.3% |
| Ealing | 14.2% |
| Barking and Dagenham | 13.2% |
London boroughs that experienced the biggest decreases in new property listings in June versus May:
| London Borough | % fall in new listings in June vs. May |
| Tower Hamlets | -8.8% |
| Richmond upon Thames | -6.5% |
| Redbridge | -5.8% |
| Havering | -4.6% |
| Hackney | -3.9% |