July property market review: Significant increase in homes coming to market

Throughout July 2020, ESPC agents have reported exceptionally high levels of property market activity. It appears the lockdown restrictions which were eased on 29th June resulted in pent-up demand for property. Consequently, there has been lots of homes coming to market and competition is high, with properties reportedly selling well.

Paul Hilton, CEO of ESPC, said: “Our agents have reported being exceptionally busy throughout July 2020, with significant demand to buy and sell property across all ESPC areas. We have also noted significant year-on-year increases in viewing and valuation requests, homes coming to market and the number of homes being placed under offer.”

In this article, we review Scottish property market activity during July 2020.

Key points

• The number of homes listed on ESPC during July 2020 increased by 42% compared to July 2019.
• In July 2020, 94% of homes marketed on ESPC in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders were priced as “offers over” and the average asking price was £249,569 compared to £224,716 in July 2019.
• ESPC received the highest number of property valuation requests on record in July 2020, up by 80% compared to the previous year.
• The number of under offer properties on ESPC in July 2020 was up by 40% compared to July 2019.
• ESPC received over 24,000 viewing requests and 61,000 Home Report downloads during July 2020, up 248% and 73% year-on-year, respectively.

Volume of houses and flats coming to market

The number of homes listed on ESPC in July 2020 increased by 42% year-on-year. The number of homes listed in July was more than triple the number listed in June, indicating that lockdown restrictions prevented many homes from coming to market.

Of the homes listed in Edinburgh, the Lothians, Fife and the Borders, 94% were marketed as “offers over” compared to 82% in July 2019. The average asking price of these homes was £249,569 compared to £224,716 in July 2020, which is a sign of confidence in the market from ESPC agents

Property valuation requests

In July 2020, ESPC also received the highest number of valuation requests on record, up by 80% compared to July 2019. A property valuation is typically the first step to selling a property, so this indicates significant interest from people looking to sell their homes in Scotland.

Under offer properties and closing dates

During July 2020, the number of under offer properties was up by 40% compared to July 2019 and more than four times the number in June 2020.

The number of closing dates in July 2020 was also up 76% compared to July 2019. Closing dates are generally a sign of competitive sales market, highlighting strong demand for property.

Buyer interest

ESPC received over 24,000 viewing requests and 61,000 Home Report downloads during July 2020, up 248% and 73% year-on-year, respectively. The volume of web traffic sessions on espc.com was also up 72% year-on-year and there were over 100,000 property schedule views on the website, compared to just over 67,000 last year.

Viewing requests, Home Report downloads, schedule views and web traffic are all indicators of buyer interest. The high volumes of these metrics suggest strong demand from buyers for property in Scotland.

Looking forward

Paul Hilton, CEO of ESPC, said: “It is encouraging to see property market activity exceed levels of last year and the months before COVID-19. This suggests strong demand to buy and sell property in Scotland.

“Our agents are also reporting that properties are generally selling very well, for above the Home Report valuation in many cases.

“We are still in the early stages of emerging from lockdown and there is still uncertainty surrounding the economy, which could, in turn, impact the property market in the coming months. ESPC will continue to monitor property market activity in order to provide updates and useful information to the public.”

Find out more

During these uncertain times, ESPC and our agents are with you every step of the way. Get in touch with an ESPC agent today to get start on your house move. 

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