OnTheMarket : Property Sentiment Index – May 2023

Property Sentiment Index

May 2023	Jason Tebb
Chief Executive Officer
(reporting on April 2023 data)

Fundamentals remain as the 'new normal' looks a lot like the old one

70% of active buyers in		64% of sellers in the UK
the UK were confident		were confident that they
that they would purchase		would sell their property
a property within the next		within the next 3 months
3 months

As far as the housing market is concerned, April was all about getting back to 'business as usual'. This is the new normal, and reassuringly, it looks a lot like the old one. A level of stability has returned to the market after a period of unprecedented uncertainty created by September's mini-Budget, which sent the price of fixed-rate mortgages soaring. Inflation seems to be on the way down, albeit more slowly than hoped, and while another interest rate rise can't be ruled out, market forecasts suggest that we're nearing the end of these increases.

All in all, the fundamentals are encouraging for the property market. This is reflected in our data for April, with 70% of UK buyers confident that they'd purchase a property within the next three months, compared to 71% in March. As well as continuing confidence among buyers, our data shows seller sentiment remains stable, with 64% of sellers confident they'd sell their property within the next three months in April, compared with 63% in March. There are usually regional variations as there's no such thing as a uniform property market but even so, this time around there was little fluctuation across the country in April. Meanwhile, nearly half (43%) of all properties were SSTC within 30 days of first being advertised for sale in April. While this is less than last April's 63%, market conditions were very different then with double-digit price growth and the 'race for space' in full swing. Now, a welcome element of stability has returned, with the numbers perhaps impacted by the Easter holidays and the traditional seasonal dip in the market when families are away and house hunting isn't a priority.

43% of properties were Sold		'New' normal looking
Subject to Contract (SSTC)		a lot like the old one
within 30 days of first being
advertised for sale, compared
with 63% in April 2022

While Nationwide building society reports that house prices rose by 0.5% in April after seven consecutive months of falls, of more interest to agents are transaction numbers, as these are a much better indicator of the overall health of the market. Encouragingly, transaction numbers are also on the rise after months of declines, according to HM Revenue & Customs. Meanwhile, the Bank of England's mortgage approvals for house purchases, an indicator of future borrowing, are also rising, although they remain below the monthly average

for last year.

Some volatility is still evident when it comes to mortgages. Mortgage rates, which soared in the autumn before falling back in the early part of this year, have recently edged upwards again as Swap rates, which underpin the pricing of fixed rates, have risen once more. There's good news for first-time buyers however, as lenders have been cutting rates on higher loan-to- value (LTV) mortgages, suggesting they're confident about the prospects for the market.

A period of relative normality and stability will be extremely welcome after all the ups and downs of the past few months. People move for different reasons and are steadily getting on with the business of moving. Despite the recent upheaval, soaring inflation, the rising cost of living and higher mortgage rates, things are settling down and instead of peaks and troughs, the market has transformed into something more consistent. It would be fair to say that the market has rebalanced and looks as though it's set for 'business as usual' going forwards.

For all media enquiries and interviews please contact the OnTheMarket press office: [e-mail]	1
www.onthemarket.com

Seller Sentiment - how confident were sellers in April 2023?

April 2023 Headlines

From our sample of sellers surveyed, UK average rates of confidence over the last month were as follows:

• 64% of sellers were confident that they would sell their property within the next 3 months, a slight increase when compared to March 2023 (63%)
• 26% of sellers were confident that they would sell their properties within the next 6 months, a slight decrease when compared to March 2023 (27%)
• 4% of sellers were confident that they would sell their properties within the next 9 months, unchanged when compared to March 2023 (4%)
• 6% of sellers were confident that they would sell their home within the next 12 months, unchanged when compared to March 2023 (6%)

The OnTheMarket Property Sentiment Survey asks sellers across the UK how confident they feel about selling their home in order to provide a 'temperature check' of market sentiment both on a national and regional basis.

Sellers are asked to indicate how confident they are that they will sell their home:

• Within the next 3 months
• Within the next 6 months
• Within the next 9 months
• Within the next 12 months

>5% increase on previous month <5% increase and <5% decrease on previous month >5% decrease on previous month

(based on Seller confidence within next 3 months)

Scotland

	Apr 23	Mar 23
Within next 3 months	66%	66%
Within next 6 months	23%	26%
Within next 9 months	4%	3%
Within next 12 months	7%	5%

North
West	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	68%	65%
	Within next 6 months	22%	25%
	Within next 9 months	4%	5%
	Within next 12 months	6%	5%
West
Midlands	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	65%	65%
	Within next 6 months	27%	27%
	Within next 9 months	3%	4%
	Within next 12 months	5%	4%
Wales	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	64%	59%
	Within next 6 months	25%	27%
	Within next 9 months	4%	5%
	Within next 12 months	7%	9%
South
West	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	59%	58%
	Within next 6 months	30%	31%
	Within next 9 months	4%	4%
	Within next 12 months	7%	7%
South
East	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	66%	64%
	Within next 6 months	25%	26%
	Within next 9 months	4%	4%
	Within next 12 months	5%	6%

		North
		East	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	59%	64%
		Within next 6 months	30%	24%
		Within next 9 months	5%	4%
		Within next 12 months	6%	8%
		Yorkshire
		& The Humber	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	66%	67%
		Within next 6 months	26%	23%
		Within next 9 months	4%	3%
		Within next 12 months	4%	7%
		East
		Midlands	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	62%	58%
		Within next 6 months	27%	31%
		Within next 9 months	6%	5%
		Within next 12 months	5%	6%
		East Of
		England	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	58%	60%
		Within next 6 months	31%	29%
		Within next 9 months	5%	6%
		Within next 12 months	6%	5%

		Greater
		London	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	65%	63%
		Within next 6 months	27%	29%
		Within next 9 months	4%	4%
		Within next 12 months	4%	4%

For all media enquiries and interviews please contact the OnTheMarket press office: [e-mail]	2
www.onthemarket.com

Buyer Sentiment - how confident were buyers in April 2023?

April 2023 Headlines

From our sample of buyers surveyed, UK average rates of confidence over the last month were as follows:

• 70% of buyers were confident that they would purchase a property within the next 3 months, a slight decrease when compared to March 2023 (71%)
• 21% of buyers were confident that they would purchase a property within the next 6 months, a slight increase when compared to March 2023 (20%)
• 3% of buyers were confident that they would purchase a property within the next 9 months, unchanged when compared to March 2023 (3%)
• 6% of buyers were confident that they would purchase a property within the next 12 months, unchanged when compared to March 2023 (6%)

The OnTheMarket Property Sentiment Survey asks buyers across the UK how confident they feel about purchasing their next property in order to provide a 'temperature check' of market sentiment both on a national and regional basis.

Buyers are asked to indicate how confident they are that they will purchase their next property:

• Within the next 3 months
• Within the next 6 months
• Within the next 9 months
• Within the next 12 months

>5% increase on previous month <5% increase and <5% decrease on previous month >5% decrease on previous month

(based on Buyer confidence within next 3 months)

Scotland

	Apr 23	Mar 23
Within next 3 months	75%	72%
Within next 6 months	16%	18%
Within next 9 months	3%	3%
Within next 12 months	6%	7%

North
West	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	74%	74%
	Within next 6 months	18%	18%
	Within next 9 months	3%	3%
	Within next 12 months	5%	5%
West
Midlands	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	72%	72%
	Within next 6 months	20%	19%
	Within next 9 months	3%	3%
	Within next 12 months	5%	6%
Wales	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	68%	66%
	Within next 6 months	22%	24%
	Within next 9 months	3%	3%
	Within next 12 months	7%	7%
South
West	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	64%	67%
	Within next 6 months	25%	23%
	Within next 9 months	4%	3%
	Within next 12 months	7%	7%
South
East	Apr 23	Mar 23
	Within next 3 months	68%	69%
	Within next 6 months	22%	21%
	Within next 9 months	4%	4%
	Within next 12 months	6%	6%

		North
		East	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	70%	72%
		Within next 6 months	22%	20%
		Within next 9 months	3%	3%
		Within next 12 months	5%	5%
		Yorkshire
		& The Humber	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	71%	73%
		Within next 6 months	19%	18%
		Within next 9 months	4%	3%
		Within next 12 months	6%	6%
		East
		Midlands	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	67%	69%
		Within next 6 months	21%	22%
		Within next 9 months	5%	4%
		Within next 12 months	7%	5%
		East Of
		England	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	67%	69%
		Within next 6 months	22%	21%
		Within next 9 months	4%	4%
		Within next 12 months	7%	6%

		Greater
		London	Apr 23	Mar 23
		Within next 3 months	71%	73%
		Within next 6 months	21%	19%
		Within next 9 months	3%	3%
		Within next 12 months	5%	5%

For all media enquiries and interviews please contact the OnTheMarket press office: [e-mail]	3
www.onthemarket.com

Mover attitudes towards mortgage availability in April 2023

April 2023 headlines:

• As a UK average, in April 2023 only 7% of movers were concerned (either very worried or slightly concerned) about securing a mortgage to fund the purchase of their next property, a slight increase when compared to March 2023 (6%)
• The North West had the highest number of respondents who already had their mortgage Agreement In Principle in place prior to starting their search for a property (27%). The South West had the lowest number of respondents who already had a mortgage Agreement In Principle in place before starting their property search (17%)
• As a UK average, 28% of movers hadn't considered applying for a mortgage before starting their property search, with buyers in Greater London the least likely to have considered applying for a mortgage before starting their search for a property (35%)
• As a UK average, 33% of buyers surveyed said that they didn't need a mortgage in order to purchase a property. Greater London had the lowest number of respondents who indicated that they wouldn't require a mortgage to purchase a property (20%). The South West had the highest number of respondents who indicated that they didn't need a mortgage to buy their next home (44%)

The OnTheMarket Property Sentiment Index provides insights in terms of how confident movers across the UK feel about securing a mortgage in order to fund the purchase of their next property. Since increased affordability assessments were introduced by lenders in 2014 as part of the Mortgage Market Review, the ability to both successfully secure a mortgage and borrow enough to fund a property purchase are key factors which can have a significant impact on home mover sentiment.

Respondents to the OnTheMarket survey are asked to indicate how they feel about raising the necessary funds to purchase their next property by choosing from the following options:

• I'm very worried
• I'm slightly concerned
• I'm sure it will be fine
• I have a mortgage Agreement in Principle already
• I don't need a mortgage to buy a property
• I've not thought about it

I'm very worried

I'm slightly concerned

I'm sure it will

be fine

I've already got a mortgage AIP

I don't need a

mortgage

I've not thought

about it yet

	Apr 23	Mar 23	Apr 23	Mar 23	Apr 23	Mar 23	Apr 23	Mar 23	Apr 23	Mar 23	Apr 23	Mar 23
UK average	2%	2%	5%	4%	9%	10%	23%	22%	33%	35%	28%	27%
Greater London	2%	4%	8%	5%	10%	13%	25%	22%	20%	24%	35%	32%
South East	1%	2%	4%	4%	9%	9%	23%	21%	35%	36%	28%	28%
South West	1%	2%	4%	4%	8%	9%	17%	17%	44%	45%	26%	23%
East of England	2%	2%	5%	4%	8%	10%	19%	19%	36%	35%	30%	30%
West Midlands	2%	2%	4%	4%	9%	10%	25%	25%	30%	32%	30%	27%
East Midlands	3%	1%	6%	4%	9%	13%	19%	21%	35%	33%	28%	28%
Yorkshire &	2%	1%	4%	3%	12%	10%	23%	22%	34%	37%	25%	27%
The Humberside
North East	1%	1%	4%	4%	9%	12%	19%	21%	40%	37%	27%	25%
North West	2%	2%	5%	4%	11%	13%	27%	25%	30%	32%	25%	24%
Wales	1%	1%	3%	2%	6%	7%	25%	26%	42%	41%	23%	23%
Scotland	1%	1%	2%	2%	9%	8%	23%	21%	41%	43%	24%	25%

For all media enquiries and interviews please contact the OnTheMarket press office: [e-mail]	4
www.onthemarket.com

Most popular Wish List searches

and average asking prices in April 2023

Most popular Wish List searches

Using data collated from our Wish List tool on OnTheMarket.com, which allows property seekers to enter features they'd like in their next property to return search results most suited to their requirements, we're able to look at the top five most popular search terms per region and the top three searches as a UK average.

Top 5 Wish List searches per region

East

East of

North

North

South

South

West

Yorkshire

London

Scotland

Wales

and the

Midlands

England

East

West

East

West

Midlands

Humber

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

Apr

Mar

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

23

1

2

3

4

5

Top 3 Wish List searches UK average

April 23

March 23

1

2

3

Key

Garden	Parking	Garage
Large	Off-street	Rural
Garden	parking
Double	Character	With
Garage	Property	Land

Average asking prices - April 2023

UK Average (excl. Greater London)

Type	April 23	March 23	April 22
Detached	£572,583	£561,230	£585,765
Semi-Detached	£357,913	£352,818	£354,767
Terraced	£278,736	£273,843	£273,766
Flat	£236,991	£234,511	£233,347
Average	£406,067	£395,001	£390,661

Greater London

Type	April 23	March 23	April 22
Detached	£1,877,624	£1,834,840	£2,092,242
Semi-Detached	£1,163,934	£1,133,383	£1,319,577
Terraced	£1,268,206	£1,222,746	£1,342,772
Flat	£885,979	£860,185	£1,001,873
Average	£1,034,081	£1,000,906	£1,122,657

For all media enquiries and interviews please contact the OnTheMarket press office: [e-mail]	5
www.onthemarket.com