The number of new “for sale” listings in August was down 1.3% from July however.
The index said that a total of eight regions were integral in shaping the positive natural trend for the number of properties sold in August compared to July, with the South East at the top recording an increase of 28.5% followed by Scotland up 22.4% and the North East up 11.7%.
The regional “not-so-hot-spots” for August house sales were the East Midlands down 9.0%, Central down 6.6% and East Anglia which was down 4.8%.
A number of individual cities experienced significant increases in monthly house sales for August compared to July with Birmingham at the top with an increase of 75.0%, followed by Southampton up 40.5% and Coventry up 34.6%.
The cities recording the greatest decline in month on month properties in August were Exeter down 16.7%, with Oxford and Milton Keynes both down 10.3%.
Stephen Watson, managing director of Agency Express, said: “With growing concerns and pessimism over the health of the UK property market, it’s reassuring to see the August data bucking the seasonal trend and evidencing some resilience.
“It’s also very encouraging to see a large number of regions and cities producing surprisingly positive August growth data despite the continued uncertainties.”
Watson said he believed the August index was further evidence of the laws of demand and supply in that properties in good condition that were reasonably priced, would sell.
He added: “In addition to the shortage of properties on the market, I believe there is still considerable work to be done by the mortgage lenders in terms of creativity with their mortgages that will help overcome the issue of unaffordable deposits for first time buyers.”
