The drastic shortage of property has created fierce competition between sellers, but with further bad economic news and redundancy announcements expected later in the summer, combined with the traditional summer lull in the property market, there is only a brief window of opportunity for sellers.
James Hyman, Partner for Residential Sales at Cluttons, said: "The uplift we are currently experiencing in the London market could be short lived, with few convincing signs of an upturn in the wider economy. This spring burst is likely to be followed later in the summer by a second, longer period of stagnation which I predict we won't emerge from until the latter part of 2010.
"People thinking about selling should be decisive and take advantage of the current extraordinary market conditions - a drastic shortage of stock combined with rocketing demand from buyers. Cluttons has seen 12 cases of gazumping in the last month alone, as a result of the lack of supply, but I expect this is only temporary. I would advise sellers to make hay while the sun shines over the next few weeks."
