New record for homes sold above asking price

A record one in three properties sold for more than the original asking price, according to the National Association of Estate Agents Propertymark report for May.

This is slightly higher than in April and is also the highest figure ever on record, beating last month’s previous record of 32 per cent.

The average number of sales agreed per estate agent branch stood at 12 in May, which is the same as April.

Year-on-year, this figure is the highest for the month of May in 17 years.

The number of sales made to first-time buyers stood at 27 per cent in May, which is the same as both March and April.

The number of properties available per member branch stood at 25 in May, falling from 27 in April.

This figure is the lowest recorded since December 2002 when there were also 25 properties available per branch.

This means there was an average of 20 buyers for every available property on the market.

The average number of house hunters registered per estate agent branch stood at 506 in May, also the highest figure ever on record for the month of May.

Mark Hayward, Chief Policy Adviser at Propertymark, said:

“It is incredible to see demand for housing continuing to break records and more homes selling for over the asking price than ever as consumers rush to beat the initial stamp duty deadline.

“With 20 buyers per available property, we are firmly still very much in a strong sellers’ market; properties are being snapped up swiftly and at record high prices.

“However, we anticipate that there will be a much-needed rebalancing over the coming months with people start returning to a semblance of normality and spending money on holidays and other activities.”