The number of days needed to find a buyer has risen compared to this time last year, although the time taken between Sold Subject to Contract (SSTC) to completion has fallen, according to new data from TwentyEA.
The data analytics company found that despite strong demand, agreeing a sale takes long in every UK region. The largest percentage increase has been seen in the East Midlands, rising from 54 days in 2023 to 77 days this year – a rise of 43%.
Meanwhile, the smallest percentage increase was seen in Inner London, which rose 12% from 77 days last year to 86 days in 2024.
These figures suggest that sellers across the country remain optimistic about prices, especially given the number of price changes peaked in July. There were almost 94,000 last month – the highest number recorded between the period January 2019 and July 2024.
While the time it takes to find a buyer has increased, the number of days to get to completion from SSTC has fallen in every region. For example, the North East has seen this figure reduce from 121 days in 2023 to 111 days this year – a reduction of 8%.
TwentyEA Executive Director Katy Billany said:“This suggests many sellers are still overly optimistic on price and we’re seeing further indications of this from the high number of price changes. Last month, these peaked at 93,968 – the highest monthly figure seen at any time between January 2019 to date.”
She added: “Overall, the property market is looking buoyant with the number of agreed sales 16% higher so far this year compared to 2023. New instructions are also up 10% and it’s very pleasing to see that the time to complete from SSTC has fallen marginally over the last year. We can see this reduction across each region and while there will be many nuances at play, one likely reason behind this is a more stable mortgage landscape.”
