Home sales hit all-year low
9th January 2018

Hopeful home sellers hit an all-year low last month with fewer than 35,000 new listings with UK estate agents, a drop of more than a third on November, with a forecast of another challenging year to come.

The figures, from research by online estate agent Houseseimple.com, show that only five UK towns or cities saw more houses going on the market, while ten saw listings fall by a half or even more.

In London, the drop was nearly 40% where only 13,430 put their homes on the market and according to the survey, every London borough saw figures fall for the second month running.

Alex Gosling, founder of Housesimple.com said: “The property market needs a sizeable bounce in January after 2017 ended with a whimper. It was a tough year with Article 50 and the General Election to contend with and there were already signs in November that sellers had decided to hold fire until the New Year. December confirmed that assertion, with new listings tumbling last month. “Historically, we do tend to see an uplift in activity in January, and with the stamp duty cut incentivising first-time buyers to purchase, this will hopefully act as a stimulus to sellers who have been reluctant to market. “We expect 2018 to be another challenging year for the property market as the UK’s exit from the EU draws closer. House price growth is predicted to be flat or at best low single digits, but that should provide encouragement to buyers who have had to battle against rising prices for a number of years. For sellers, it’s the same message. There is no point in delaying putting your property on the market if you need or want to move. There are still plenty of buyers out there, and if you’re committed you will sell.”

HouseSimple.com looked at new properties listed in more than 100 UK towns and cities using data from Home.co.uk, which lists more than 500,000 properties for sale.