Propertymark’s latest insight report shows a slight rise in the number of viewings reported by member branches, up to three in May from 2.3 in April. CEO Nathan Emerson called the figures ‘encouraging’ and said they show ‘impressive resilience within the housing sector’.
Elsewhere in the report, numbers remained broadly static or in slight decline, with completion times nudging back up. Last month, 32% of member branches reported time to exchange taking longer than 17 weeks – this month, it’s 37%.
Market appraisals fell from 27 to 23, and new supply dropped from 13.6 homes for sale per member branch in April to 11.5 in May. Stock levels remained static, with 41 per member branch.
The average number of new prospective buyers registered per member branch fell again in May, down to 75 from 87 in April . Propertymark attributes this to the ongoing impact of stamp duty threshold changes and expects growth to resume over the summer months.
However, Emerson said the increase in viewing numbers is a positive sign that consumers are still engaging with the market.
He commented:
“As we progress further into the year, it is encouraging to witness the impressive resilience within the housing sector.
“Despite inflation remaining stubborn relative to the Bank of England’s 2% target – and the subsequent influence this continues to have on base rate decisions – the market has still delivered house price growth. These factors have certainly not discouraged consumers from entering the buying and selling process. It is especially positive to see the average number of viewings per property available for sale trending upwards so far this year.”
The Propertymark insight report is based on responses to a monthly survey of 100 Propertymark member agents.
