Buyer demand and agreed sales measures has fallen back into negative territory in July, the latest Rics residential market survey reveals.
The latest data shows that new buyer enquiries reported a net balance of -6% in July, down from +4% the previous month.
Rics says this implies a slight softening in demand compared to the prior survey period.
Agreed sales reported a net balance of -16%, marking a renewed deterioration compared to the reading of -4% registered in June.
Looking at changes in supply, a net balance of +9% of respondents cited an increase in the flow of new listings coming onto the market.
Meanwhile, the net balance reading of +4% for the market appraisals metric during July points to minimal change when compared to the equivalent period 12 months ago.
Given the current figure represents the least positive return for this series since December 2024, it looks to be pointing to a flatter pipeline for new instructions moving forward.
House prices at a national level recorded a net balance of -13% for the survey’s headline gauge of price growth.
Rics suggests this signals a small downward adjustment in average house prices across the country, with the latest feedback weakening slightly from readings of -7% returned in each of the previous two monthly reports.
Over the coming three months, respondents expect prices to remain under a small degree of downward pressure at the national level.
However, when asked to assess the 12 month outlook, a net balance of +19% of contributors predict an increase in house prices.
In the lettings market, tenant demand held more or less steady in the three months to July, recording a net balance +4%, easing from a reading of +14% in the previous quarter.
The negative trend in landlord instructions continues to be reported, with the latest net balance of -31% representing the weakest since April 2020.
In line with the lack of supply coming through, rental prices are anticipated to continue to rise over the next three months by a net balance of +25% of survey participants.
