According to the seasonally adjusted figures from the government, there were 117,860 residential transactions in April which is 179.5% higher than in the same month in 2020.
However, this steep increase reflected the fact the property market was closed during April 2020 because of the pandemic, skewing the data.
As such, most commentary on today’s report focused on the 35.7% drop between March 2021 and April 2021.
Indeed, many thought the dip was a result of the ‘rush’ created by the original stamp duty deadline of 31 March.
Mark Harris, chief executive of mortgage broker SPF Private Clients, said: “April’s dip in transactions compared with March is likely to be at least partly due to the anticipated end of the stamp duty holiday, before its extension was announced, which resulted in buyers taking their foot off the gas to get deals done.
“Now that the holiday has been extended, activity has picked up again.”
His thoughts were echoed by Jonathan Sealey, CEO at Hope Capital, who said: “It will come as no surprise that last month’s figures should have dropped so sharply at almost 36% on March, given the rush to beat the stamp duty deadline that was driving activity all through the first quarter.
“With that deadline now looming on the horizon for the end of June it’s likely we will see the same pattern towards the end of Q2.
He added: “We are still a long way from those dark days 12 months ago. And going forward there are real signs of optimism more widely with extremely positive retail sales figures out today, and forecasts for growth revised upwards to suggest a much stronger recovery to come this year.
“As a specialist lender we are seeing that reflected in the aspirations of our clients who are looking for alternatives to the high street lenders who weren’t there during the pandemic. People want more flexibility and choice to help get the deal done, which is a great opportunity for the specialist lending sector.”
Imbalance in the market
Others were not too sure the boom was sustainable going forward, in part because of the lack of supply in the housing market.
Sarah Coles, personal finance analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The number of sales isn’t the only important measure, and there are other more disquieting figures dominating the market at the moment.
“The stamp duty extension certainly kept buyers interested, but it failed to energise sellers to the same extent, so we’re seeing a real imbalance in the market, which is pushing prices up.
“This may be good news for anyone hoping to remortgage and free up cash from their home, but it’s terrible news for those trying to get onto the property ladder.
“The Bank of England figures show that 75% of those who are priced out of the property market are struggling to raise a deposit big enough to buy (the others have issues with the loan-to-income ratio).
“The faster that property prices rise, the more those buyers will have to save, so as they struggle to hit their goals, every day they’re moving further away.”
