Provisional figures from Her Majesty's Revenue and
Customs show there were 109,630 residential property
transactions in the UK during August.
The figure is slightly higher than the 107,620 for July and a
significant improvement on the 101,840 recorded in June.
When compared to last year, the August figure shows a slight
increase – up from 109,480.
The seasonally adjusted figures show a 'negligible' fall between
July and August, from 97,710 to 97,660.
August's seasonally adjusted figure is 6.1% lower than the one
published in the same month last year.
This year's transaction peak was recorded in March (171,370), when
activity among landlords and investors spiked in the run up to the
additional 3% stamp duty surcharge deadline.
The top-line figures are slightly down from August last year, but
this is no cause for concern – it is important to note that when
you discount seasonal adjustment, the changes from the same period
last year, are negligible,” says David Brown, chief executive of
Marsh & Parsons.
“The total numbers for Q1 and Q2 of 2016 were astronomically high
compared to the corresponding period last year. Consequently the
market is still levelling after the frenzy we saw as people
clambered to meet the April Stamp Duty deadline.”
Brian Murphy, Mortgage Advice Bureau's head of lending says the
figures present a 'stable picture' of post-referendum activity.
"What we can see here is that the Referendum result didn’t appear
to cause a significant ‘drop-off’ effect on those who were
mid-transaction or indeed those who started their purchase process
after that date," he says.
"August is typically quieter due to the summer hiatus, and compared
with 2015 which was exceptionally busy due to pent up market demand
following the general election, one would suggest that the small
year on year decrease is just an indicator of the market returning
to normal," adds Murphy.
September has been an outstanding month for sales in JP
& Brimelow Withington, Didsbury and Chorlton offices and we are
now looking for NEW properties to sell to our extensive database of
ready to purchase buyers.
If you have a property you are considering selling give us
a call today on 0161 445 9700 to discuss a FREE market
appraisal.
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