The Propertymark Housing Report for May revealed that 79 per cent of agents said a majority of properties were sold for less than the asking price compared to 74 per cent in April.
The average number of prospective buyers was only four per cent down on last year, with 86 potential buyers per member branch. This was up from an average of 70 in April. Property viewing activity was stable in May too, at three viewings per property compared to 3.3 the month before.
However, compared to the same month last year, viewings had dropped by 50 per cent.
Property supply increases
Although the number of properties coming to market dipped slightly from 10 in April to nine in May, the average number of available stock increased 34 to 36 month on month. Propertymark said the number of homes available for sale was 64 per cent higher than last year.
The average number of sales agreed came to seven per member branch in May, down from eight in April.
Nathan Emerson CEO of Propertymark, said: “Despite the current economic conditions, it is reassuring to see that the number of new prospective buyers coming to the market is only four per cent lower than last year when the sales market was in a frenzy.
“We are also seeing the number of properties on the market slowly improving which in turn provides more choice for serious buyers and an opportunity to negotiate on the sale price.”
Rental demand stays strong
In the lettings market, demand for rental homes remained high with 113 prospective tenants registering per member branch on average, compared to 118 in April. This was also two per cent higher than last year.
The level of stock fell in May, further tightening demand, with just nine properties available to rent per member branch. This was 12 per cent down on the same month last year, which is when Propertymark said the market first started to get competitive.
An average of 13 tenants registered for each available property in May, and the association said the mismatch between supply and demand rose by 15 per cent.
Consequently, 66 per cent of estate agents noted an average monthly increase in average rents. This was up from 51 per cent of respondents who said rents had risen in April, but down from the 79 per cent who said the same last year.
Emerson added: “In terms of lettings, a worrying mismatch is continuing in supply and demand levels. Those looking for rental properties continues to grow however, due to the lack of available properties and because of an ongoing introduction of regulation and financial barriers for landlords, inevitably, rents are rising to keep up with increasing costs including tax and mortgage payments.”
