New properties to market see 40% rise in January

According to the figures, 10% of towns saw new property listings more than double last month. Almost half (48%) of UK towns and cities saw new listings up at least 50% in January.

Traditionally, the property market does experience a rush of homeowners marketing their properties in the New Year, although this year the spike has been more pronounced. Only six towns across the UK saw fewer new sellers marketing in January than listed their properties in December.

London, which has seen property prices falling over the past couple of months, saw a huge increase in new sellers in January, with every borough in the capital seeing more new property listings compared to December. New property supply was up 78.7% in January, and a fifth of London boroughs saw new seller numbers double last month, with property listings up 118.7% in Hillingdon and 117.3% in Bromley.  

Across the regions, the south saw the biggest gains in new sellers in January, with five out of the top ten biggest risers in January. Solihull, in the West Midlands, registered the largest percentage of new property listings last month, up almost 150% on December.

The following table shows the ten UK towns and cities which saw the highest number of new sellers in January 2018 vs December 2017:

London

After December saw just 13,430 homeowners put their properties on the market, the lowest number in any single month in 2017 by some margin; there were 24.004 new property listings in January.
 
The following table shows the five London boroughs where new sellers more than doubled in January 2018 vs December 2017:

Sam Mitchell, CEO of online estate agents HouseSimple.com, comments: “After 2017 ended with a whimper, the property market has enjoyed a much-needed New Year bounce in new supply. This boost does need to be put into context though, as new listings are still at very low levels. The market desperately needs a few more healthy months to fill the supply reservoir.

We expect 2018 to be another challenging year for the UK housing market as the country’s exit from the EU draws closer. House price growth is likely to be single digits this year at best. However, the property market has proven over the past 12 months that it is robust enough to handle the blustery economic headwinds coming its way.

For anyone thinking of selling their property over the next few months, they can be reassured there are committed buyers out there. But this is a price sensitive market. Buyers are negotiating harder and are happy to wait for the right property at the right price.”