Taylor Scott International News
Property sales in the UK were 10% higher in the first quarter of 2016, boosted by a rush in demand for buy to let and second homes due to a stamp duty surcharge, new figures show. Some 275,002 transactions were registered between January and March, up 10% from the previous first quarter record from 2014, when 251,042 transactions were logged, according to the latest Conveyancing Market Tracker report from Search Acumen. The report points out that the 2014 rush was due to a surge of activity ahead of the Mortgage Market Review (MMR) rule changes in April 2014, as consumers moved to secure mortgage finance and complete deals before affordability checks were tightened. The latest tracker, which uses Land Registry data, also shows that sales volumes in the first three months of 2016 were also up 15% year on year, as conveyancers pushed second home buyers and landlords to completion before the introduction of the new 3% stamp duty surcharge which was introduced on 01 April 2016. The report points out that the potential for a time lag due to extended timelines for Land Registry applications being completed means the higher volume of conveyancing transactions may also continue into the second quarter of 2016. Year on year, those firms ranked 11 to 20 in terms of transactions completed experienced the biggest growth from the first quarter of 2015 to the first quarter of 2016, with their transaction volumes rising 24% from 801 to 994 on average. Firms ranked from 21 to 50 experienced the second best year on year growth rate, with average sales in the first quarter up from 551 to 665, a rise of 21%. Overall, the top 1,000 firms in the market experienced 16% annual growth, compared with 11% outside the top 1,000. It means that the aggregate market share for the top five firms has now been 6% or less for each of the last five quarters since the fourth quarter of 2014 as competition has heated up further down the ranks. ‘Conveyancers’ services have been in high demand so far this year as buyers of second homes and buy to let properties have created a stampede to beat the April 2016 stamp duty deadline,’ said Mark Riddick, chairman of Search Acumen. He pointed out that the artificial stimulus of government intervention has put major pressure on workloads, more than the firm has seen in the opening exchanges of any year since the recession and topping the pre-MMR rush of 2014. ‘Our analysis points to another interesting trend in the market, where challenger firms have enjoyed the biggest benefits of the year on year rise in transactions. As conveyancers pause for breath after the stamp duty frenzy, there may be some who are left licking their wounds or feeling their business performance could have been better,’ explained Riddick. ‘Periods like this, when services come under pressure from extra demand, can be testing all round, and it’s important for conveyancers to ensure their… Taylor Scott International
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