Activity across the housing market has been rather mixed for September, with a drop in overall demand but and a slight decrease in the number of first time buyers, reflecting similar fluctuations for the same period in 2009.
The continued decrease in the number of registered house-hunters is less severe than last month and this might be attributed to those who chose to remain on holiday, taking an extended break into the early part of September.
Encouragingly, housing stock levels continued to increase across the country over the course of the month, up by an average of 10 properties on this time last year, This is good news for the market, which in recent times has struggled to meet demand from house-hunters.
The number of sales made on average by each branch remained unaffected between August and September and the percentage of sales made to first time buyers decreased, suggesting that strict lending criteria and the economic environment continues to hinder those looking to get onto the housing ladder.
It will be interesting to see whether plans by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to introduce tougher measures on mortgages in October, will further affect the first time buyers market.
NUMBER OF HOUSE-HUNTERS
The average number of house-hunters registered per branch decreased from 250 in August to 247 in September Demand for property dropped for the second month in a row between August and September, when many continued to holiday abroad, putting their house search on hold.
However, this decrease was not as high as it was between July and August, and demand should pick up in October as more house-hunters return to the market following the summer break.
SALES PER BRANCH
The average number of sales agreed per branch remained the same in September as it did in August at 7. The number of sales being made on average continued to remain stable throughout September which is reassuring. While this figure is still down on figures from this time last year, sales remain strong for Q3 of 2010.
HOUSING STOCK
The average number of properties available for sale per branch rose slightly from 69 in August to 72 in September. The number of sellers bringing homes to the market continued to increase between August and September. This is a good sign that the market is beginning to meet demand for homes following a supply drought earlier in the year.
FIRST TIME BUYERS
The percentage of first time buyers (FTBs) decreased from 21 in August to 20 in September. Sadly, first time buyers continue to struggle to increase their foothold in the housing market.
The steady decrease since July suggests that this group continue to suffer from strict lending policies from the banks. It will be interesting to see whether the planned FSA mortgage controls will further hamper this section of the housing market if introduced.
