Boom - Quarter of homes sell in a week

As unprecedented demand continued to propel property asking prices to record highs, a quarter of homes put on the market last month sold in less than a week.

 

The number of properties selling in under seven days in March was the highest recorded by property website Rightmove. In what has been described as the strongest sellers' market in a decade, frenzied demand is still far outpacing supply, with more than nine new applicants registering for every property.

 

Rightmove says homes are being snapped up within 45 days of going on the market on average in the UK, and that semi-detached houses with two or three bedrooms are selling the quickest, with 30pc marked as sold after less than a week.

 

The surging level of demand has pushed up average asking prices 2.1pc between March and April to £327,797. Changes to asking prices reflect not what homes are eventually sold for, but how sellers regard their position in the market.

 

Tim Bannister, of Rightmove, attributed the market surge to buyers prioritising space, as well as the stamp duty holiday extension, cheaper mortgages, the new Government support for 5pc deposit mortgages, and a significant shortage in supply.

 

Richard Freshwater, of estate agency Cheffins, said the lack of stock was the biggest in his 20 years in the industry, saying, "On average, every house we put on the market sees over 40 requests for viewings, all from buyers who are in the position to move. This level of interest is throughout the market at all price levels, with demand for large country homes at the same rate as the more affordable, smaller city-based options."

 

The most expensive areas of London, which bore the brunt of the market drop last year, recorded a surge in activity. Property analysts LonRes found new instructions were 72pc higher in March 2021 than in March 2020, with the sub-£1m market the busiest section.

 

Exchanges in the first quarter of 2021 were also 40pc higher than those in the same three months last year. Marcus Dixon, of LonRes, said, "This is unsurprising given this is where the biggest saving as a proportion of total buying costs was to be made. But the top end of the market did well too."

 

E&K Solicitors

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