According to the figures, 13% of properties sold for more than the original asking price in August – the highest recorded since November 2015. This is a rise from 8% in July, and 10% in June. 53% of properties sold for less than the original asking price in August.
The average number of sales agreed per estate agent branch stood at 12 in August, a slight decrease from 13 in July. This is the highest figure recorded for the month of August since 2007 when the number of sales per estate agent branch also stood at 12.
Year-on-year, the number of sales per branch has increased by 33 per cent, rising from nine in August 2019.
Demand for housing
In August, the number of house hunters registered per estate agent branch fell from 428 in July to 396. The number of properties available per member branch stood at 40 in August, falling marginally from 43 in July.
The number of sales made to FTBs stood at 23% in August, a fall from 25% in July.
Mark Hayward, Chief Executive, NAEA Propertymark comments: “It’s interesting to see that one in eight properties sold for more than asking in August this year. Last month, we witnessed a boom in the number of prospective buyers following the government’s announcement of a Stamp Duty holiday, and it seems this is increasing the level of competition in the property market. With the increase in the number of prospective buyers since this announcement, many buyers are clearly willing to pay over the asking price in order to secure their dream home.”
