North South Divide Widens for House Sales

The North South divide is widening for house sales, according to the latest Lloyds TSB property sales report.

House sales have slowed more in the North than in the South since the peak in activity in 2007, the report shows, with a 56% decline in the number of transactions in the North compared to 42% fall in the South.

The number of property sales has almost halved over the past three years in England and Wales.

Overall, the number of property sales has almost halved over the last three years in England and Wales. There were 649,957 home sales in 2010; 47% less than in 2007 when 1,222,402 were sold.

The Lloyds TSB property sales report, which is based on Land Registry data looks at the number of property transactions in the 500 largest towns and London boroughs.

It shows that Esher in Surrey, has seen the number of house sales fall by only 14.6% during the last three years whereas Birkenhead, near Liverpool, saw the largest decline with 69% fewer sales in 2010 compared to 2007.

The report shows a link between the number of house sales and trend for property prices as house prices have generally risen the most in areas that experienced the lowest falls in the number of transactions.

Although the number of house sales did increase in almost all regions in 2010, it is likely that the property market will remain subdued for some time, as Suren Thiru, Lloyds TSB Housing Economist, comments:

“Looking forward, the overall level of activity in the housing market is likely to remain somewhat subdued for the foreseeable future, although regional differences are likely.”