The quarterly confidence tracker from the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) showed that after activity fell to a two-year low as people waited to see what would be announced in the fiscal statement, just 36% of property professionals believe business has picked up since November.
However, conveyancers have more confidence in the housing market, with 52% expressing this sentiment, up from 42% at the last survey.
Consumers are more optimistic too, as the survey found 36% felt confident about the current market, up from 17% last year. Similarly, confidence among sellers rose from 16% last year to 24%.
Stephen Ward, director of strategy and external relations at the CLC, said: “It is clear from the responses to our survey that, while some see green shoots of recovery, many believe the predicted bounce-back may take a little longer.
“However, there is a sense that buyers and sellers are feeling more confident, albeit that they may not all be in an immediate rush to move.”
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The survey also examined attitudes toward speed and efficiency in the conveyancing process, finding that just 18% of respondents felt there had been improvements.
Transaction times are still around 3-4 months on average, and the CLC said this has not changed since the first tracker at the start of last year, confirming the sentiment of most respondents.
Ward added: “The current fall-through rate of 30% is unacceptable and must be reduced, and a huge amount of work is being done by the Home Buying and Selling Council and other industry leaders and innovators to make that happen.
“The vision is to deliver a more efficient and reliable system, which will instil confidence in consumers and conveyancers alike and support a healthy housing market for everyone.”
