Hamptons reports that so far this year, 73% of property buyers have been chain-free, which is a new record.

This up from 69% in 2021. The all-time low for this metric occurred in 2010, at 65%.

The firm adds that 61% of sellers in 2022 opted for a chain-free offer over when given the choice, which is another newly minted record. Last year this stood at 59%.

And the share of homes bought by somebody selling their main residence dropped from 30% last year to 27% thus far, another record low.

This behaviour, Hamptons says, is being powered by more action from first-time buyers and property investors (26% of purchases so far this year and 14%, respectively).

This holds true for every region bar London and the North East, where offers for property are relatively thin compare to elsewhere in Britain.

Hamptons head of research Aneisha Beveridge comments: “The current pace of the market has put buyers with a home to sell at the back of the queue.

“In a fast-paced market such as today, over three-quarters of sellers had multiple offers on the table to choose from.

“And given chain-free buyers tend to complete quicker and sales are less likely to fall through, they are fast becoming the preferred option for sellers.”