English property sales recover on lockdown easing: Rightmove

Estate agents in England have monitored a recovery in property sales. This could be attributed to the government’s move of lifting lockdown restrictions on May 13, Rightmove said on Monday.

Rightmove said that property sales during lockdown dropped by 94%. June 5 records showed that sales were just 3% below their level a year earlier. Moreover, they averaged two-thirds of their initial record over the previous three weeks.

“There are signs of high pent-up demand and upwards price pressure, rather than downwards,” Rightmove director Miles Shipside said.

Average asking prices for properties on the site were 1.9%. This came way higher than the record before lockdowns were implemented. When it comes to properties where a sale had been settled, the accepted price was 98% of the asking price, slightly larger than the rate in February.