April proved to be a busy month for residential property sales, with new data issued by Propertymark showing increases in activity levels across a number of different areas.
This data reveals that the amount of agreed residential property sales, new sales instructions and registrations by potential buyers all rose during the month. April also brought a rise in the volume of housing market appraisals. That is important because it suggests that there will be an increase in the number of homes available on the market. During March it was 22 for each estate agency that is a member of Propertymark, but by April it had risen to 26, representing a month-on-month rise of 14%.
When it comes to potential buyers registering at one of these branches, the number rose to 88 for April compared with 76 during March. Agreed sales and instructions went up too, with member estate agencies placing an average of 12 properties each for the month.
Propertymark CEO Nathan Emerson was quoted by Financial Reporter as saying that there has been a rise in optimism, despite continued economic issues.
He then added that:
“GDP is estimated to have grown by 0.4% in March and inflation (CPI) reduced from 3.2% in March to 2.3% in April, which is within touching distance of the Bank of England’s target. We remain hopeful that a much-needed reduction in the base rate will occur in the near term.”
The figures point to increased business for those who have the CeMAP qualification needed to advise prospective buyers.
