NAEA Propertymark has revealed that, in July, the number of properties available per estate agent branch increased for the third month in a row, rising from an average of 33 per branch in April, to 37 in May, 39 in June and 41 last month.
Year-on-year this is a 17% increase, as agents had just 35 properties available to market in July 2017.
Overall, the number of house hunters registered at estate agents fell for the second month running with 303 registered per branch in July – the lowest recorded since December 2017 when agents had 268 on their books.
NAEA Propertymark said this is typical of July, as house hunters put their plans on hold while summer holiday season takes priority. For the last three years, demand has dipped in July compared to June.
First time buyers took advantage of these market conditions, and 30% of all sales were made to the group in July.
This is an increase of one percentage point from June and seven from July 2017 when just 23% of sales were made to the group.
Mark Hayward, chief executive of NAEA Propertymark, said: “What we saw in July was typical of the summer. House hunters put their plans on hold as the holiday season takes priority, and demand dips as a result.
“We don’t usually see first time buyers taking advantage of this environment and pushing to agree sales while sellers are on the back-foot.
“In September, buyers typically storm the market in a bid to complete sales in time for Christmas, so first time buyers should make the most of the slower market while they can.”