Sales to FTBS rise during seasonal slowdown

Sales to FTBS rise during seasonal slowdown

Recent research has revealed a rise in sales to first-time buyers during the final month of 2017.

According to survey results from the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA), the number of sales per branch fell, with the overall number of registered house hunters dropping by 20%.

However, those taking their first step onto the property ladder seemed to take advantage of the quieter market, with sales to first-time buyers up by just under a third (32%).

Per branch, the number of prospective homeowners fell to 268 in December last year, down from 333 in the previous month.  Similarly, the number of sales agreed per branch also saw a decline, falling to five. This is down from November’s 7.

During December, the supply of housing remained relatively unchanged at an average of 33 per branch – a fall of just one. When compared to December 2016’s average of 41 however, the change in supply seems more significant.

The final month of 2017 also saw a slight reduction in the duration between acceptance of an offer and the exchange of contracts, with 4% being undertaken in under four weeks. This can be seen as an improvement of January’s 1% proportion.

In line with this was the percentage of transactions passing the 17 weeks mark; from November’s 7%, the proportion was down to 4% in the following month.

Commenting on the results of the survey was NAEA Chief Executive Mark Hayward.

He stated: “We see this year in, year out. Buyers take a back seat in December to enjoy the festivities, while sellers keep their homes on the market in the hope that someone will take interest and make an offer.

“What we don’t usually see is FTBs capitalising on this slump and using it to their advantage – 44% of our members think that the Chancellor’s stamp duty cut for FTBs will encourage more to make offers, and it looks like that’s what we’re starting to see. Hopefully this enthusiasm won’t falter when the second and third time buyers come back onto the market in the new year and competition hots up again.”

Georgia Owen

Georgia is the Content Executive and will be your primary contact when submitting your latest news. While studying for an LLB at the University of Liverpool, Georgia gained experience working within retail, as well as social media management. She later went on to work for a local newspaper, before starting at Today’s Conveyancer.

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