Where have all the vendors gone? Housing supply hits record low in March
NAEA says the levels of sellers and buyers 'aren't where we'd expect them to be' during what is traditionally the busiest month of the year for agents.
The supply of homes for sale in the UK hit a record low for the month of March, the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) has claimed.
Its monthly snapshot of estate agent inventory has discovered that there were just 37 properties for sale on average at each branch of its members, an all-time low.
The supply of properties during what is traditionally the busiest month in the property calendar has been steadily declining in recent years. In 2013 the figure was 60 properties per branch.
The shocking figure comes despite a month-on-month increase of 9% from February and is also matched by a six-year low in demand for homes, the NAEA says.
House hunters
Some 286 house hunters were registered with each branch, the lowest figure since 2013 and 25% down on March 2017 when each branch had 397 prospective buyers on their books.
The number of sales per branch fell as well, from eight during March 2017 to seven sales this year.
“Despite the fact that activity in the housing market increased in March, the levels of supply and demand recorded aren’t where we would expect them to be at this time of year,” says Mark Hayward, Chief Executive of the NAEA.
“It’s clear buyers and sellers are still feeling cautious and holding off on making any decisions in light of the current political climate and economic uncertainty.
“However, recent house price data indicates we might see confidence in the market grow as house prices slowly begin to return to previous levels and we edge closer to the summer months.”