John Phillips, national operations direction at Just Mortgages, said: “As the UK housing market steadily edges closer to normality, property transactions are returning to familiar levels."
Residential transactions in September stood at 160,950, 68.4% higher than September 2020 and 67.5% higher than August 2021, according to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
The provisional seasonally adjusted estimate of UK non-residential transactions in September 2021 was 10,420, 20.2% higher than September 2020 and 8.4% higher than August 2021.
The provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of UK residential transactions in September 2021 is 165,720, 67.3% higher than September 2020 and 59.7% higher than August 2021.
The provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of UK non-residential transactions in September 2021 is 10,630, 17.8% higher than September 2020 and 17.0% higher than August 2021.
John Phillips, national operations direction at Just Mortgages, said: “As the UK housing market steadily edges closer to normality, property transactions are returning to familiar levels.
“There is no doubt that despite demand still desperately outweighing supply, the desire to move has not wilted for prospective buyers.
"Particularly those looking for larger homes as hybrid working models are adopted widely across the country and people seek office space at home. Buyers who find themselves in frenzied waters right now are – rightly so – making the most of low borrowing rates.
“As we look forward to the rest of 2021, it is safe to say that the number of buyers is not set to drop as people race to buy property before we see possible increases in interest rates.”
Stuart Wilson, corporate marketing director at more2life, added: “Today’s findings are no surprise given the considerable activity witnessed in the run up to the conclusion of the stamp duty holiday.
"The holiday itself has been a resounding success, helping not only countless first-time buyers and second-steppers to move up the housing ladder, but also enabling silver spenders and last-time buyers to downsize, find more accessible housing, or move closer to family and friends.
“While the first-time buyer market was arguably the most buoyant, the stamp duty holiday encouraged more older borrowers to consider their options and we saw the tax break driving a 116% year on year increase in the number of people using equity release for property purchase at more2life alone.
“This increase in borrowers using lifetime mortgages to fund purchase activity has been sustained even after the stamp duty holiday concluded at the end of September, suggesting that it was instrumental in driving awareness around this under-used benefit of lifetime mortgages. This is but one of its many healthy legacies.”
Richard Pike, Phoebus Software sales and marketing director, says “We are all on a bit of a roller-coaster ride at the moment.
"One moment we’re up and the next we’re down.
"The housing market climbed quickly to the top during the stamp duty holiday, then it dipped as expected, and now we’re heading up again.
"In reality, we’re still riding pretty high and house prices, as reported by the ONS, continue to climb as demand for properties with more space and away from city centres remains.
“Inflation may yet play its part and the Monetary Policy Committee will have a lot to think about in its next meeting.
"However, the economy is still fragile and, although raising interest rates may be the conventional way to put a lid on rising inflation, the question is, can we afford to hamper growth after such a long period of stagnation.
"We may well see interest rates rise in the coming months, but it is by no means a certainty.
“Coming out of the pandemic was always going to be a tricky time, but for now our market is weathering the storm while many other industries are taking the brunt.”
