We have rarely seen more speculation in the market. With recent news that the Government might well be “shaking up” the way that property is taxed, married to an uncertain economic landscape, means that we are being asked every day what our view is. Sellers are looking at their property assets from a much more long-term perspective in a changing environment, asking; What is the smart move?
Buyers are looking at the market through an ultra-cautious lens, only committing to the very best properties, or those priced competitively enough to bring them off the fence. This is a particularly uncertain time in which we seek to provide clarity.
The market has its challenges, and many agents (behind closed doors) are expressing “woe is me”. But there are some very encouraging signs – rather than waiting for the market to come to us, we have been extremely proactive over the summer and have achieved a superb set of results in return for our efforts.
At the start of the year, we expected 2025 to demonstrate a fall in income in our sales business and for the lettings business to remain strong. While our lettings department has continued to perform very well, our sales team have seen a far stronger set of results than we anticipated – testament to the underlying resilience of the PCL market. In the last 4 months, we have sold more property than in all of 2024.
This is for two reasons – firstly, rather than allowing sales to coast and chase a softening market, we have been on the “front foot” since the 2nd of January – focused sellers are seeking outcomes, and we are extremely proactive in generating these. Secondly, because there is a very busy market. It just needs an astute estate agent to find it.
Some key metrics:
· Our viewing numbers Year to Date vs 2024 are down 34%, although in the last 3 months they are down 23% Year on Year. This shows an improving trajectory, particularly through the usually quiet summer months. However, we have received 8% more offers in the last 3 months vs the same period in 2024.
· 41% fewer buyers have registered with us in the Year to Date compared to 2024; however, in the last 3 months, this is down 28%. This represents a significantly improving trajectory.
· Our current viewing to offer ratio is just over 5 to 1. A typical benchmark is 10 to 1.
This is largely a discretionary market. The removal of non-dom status and general uncertainty will have blown away much of the froth of this market and buyers who lack real intention have stopped looking. We like to look at our “viewing to offer” ratio to assess the level of intention in the market.
Our 10-year average is around 10 viewings per offer received. At the height of Brexit uncertainty in 2018, this was 48-1. Our current rate is just five viewings per offer, which is incredibly positive – there is a high degree of commitment in the market from those buyers who are looking; 58% of the properties we have sold over the summer saw competition between buyers.
We have been working extremely hard to ensure that our clients receive outstanding advice and that the right marketing strategies are deployed. When done correctly, we see a very encouraging level of offers. Remarkably, looking at the sales we have transacted this year, our average time gap between “right price” and “offer accepted” remains under 20 days.
At this time of year, as new buyers enter the market, we will be launching several exciting properties. The team at Maskells are very enthusiastic about the coming period, particularly as we have seen a fantastic set of results so far this year. Uncertainty is always present, and a challenging market sorts the wheat from the chaff. But it also means that the outstanding agents get noticed – those who deliver and really make a positive difference for their clients when they most need it.
Uncertainty is a certainty, but we continue to deliver.
