A record number of sellers put their property up for sale on Rightmove on Boxing Day, a 26% increase on the previous record last year.

The number of buyers contacting estate agents about homes for sale jumped by 273% between the Christmas Day lull and Boxing Day, and was 17% higher than last Boxing Day

Boxing Day traditionally signals the start of home-mover activity starting to ramp up following the usual lull over Christmas.

Rightmove’s property expert Tim Bannister said: “The scale of this year’s Boxing Day bounce is an early positive sign at the start of the year that buyers and sellers are out there and taking action, likely including some movers who had put their plans on hold last year”.

He added: “Whilst it is early days, it will be key to monitor activity as it ramps up through the end of winter and into spring, particularly to track whether sellers are pricing attractively enough to agree a sale with a buyer quickly, given buyers now have more choice to consider than last year and are still very price sensitive.”