Overview
- Buyer enquiries fell 8% year on year and new sales agreed slipped 3% in the four weeks to 19 October, marking the first annual drop in new sales agreed since October 2023.
- The cooling is concentrated on properties above £500,000, with sharper declines reported in London, the South East and the East of England, while Scotland and parts of northern England are holding up better.
- Zoopla estimates nearly 350,000 homes are currently progressing through the sales pipeline, the largest since May 2021, which should support near‑term completions.
- The supply of homes for sale is up 7% on last year and the average time to find a buyer is about 37 days nationwide, rising to roughly 45 days in London.
- Estate agents broadly characterise the slowdown as a temporary pause ahead of the November Budget, with some expecting any rebound to be more evident in the new year.