The UK property market continues to show resilience despite recent stamp duty changes and economic headwinds. Let’s dive into the key metrics from April 2025 and what they tell us about the current state of the housing market.
Properties for Sale & New Listings
The number of properties for sale reached 2,065 in April 2025, representing a significant 10.72% increase compared to April 2024. This continues the upward trend we’ve seen over the past few years and puts current stock levels 33.79% above the six-year average.
New listings have shown even stronger growth, with 569 properties coming to market in April 2025 – a substantial 29.61% increase year-on-year. This surge in new inventory indicates strong seller confidence despite the stamp duty deadline passing at the end of March.
Sales Activity
Sales agreed numbers tell an encouraging story, with 457 transactions agreed in April 2025, up 4.82% compared to the same period last year. While this is a modest 1.56% increase from March 2025, it’s notably 22.52% higher than the six-year April average.
The modest monthly growth in sales agreed (1.56% from March to April) suggests that the market has absorbed the stamp duty changes without significant disruption to transaction volumes.
Price Metrics & Asking Prices
April 2025 saw average asking prices increase to £242,322 for new listings, representing a 4.70% increase year-on-year. Meanwhile, the asking price for sales agreed rose to £218,742, up 5.28% from April 2024.
Price per square foot data also indicates healthy growth:
- New listings: £231 per sq ft (+3.13% YoY)
- Sales agreed: £222 per sq ft (+5.21% YoY)
Interestingly, while new listing prices decreased slightly (-1.28%) from March to April 2025, sales agreed prices increased by 4.23% in the same period, suggesting stronger negotiating power from buyers in the current market conditions.
Market Disruptions: Price Changes, Withdrawals & Fall-Throughs
One of the most positive indicators in April’s data is the dramatic reduction in fall-throughs – down 83.18% compared to last year. Only 18 transactions fell through in April 2025, compared to 107 in April 2024 and well below the average of 71.
Property withdrawals also declined significantly, down 31.51% year-on-year, with just 100 properties withdrawn from the market in April 2025 compared to 146 in April 2024.
However, price changes have increased, with 305 properties seeing price adjustments in April 2025 – up 10.51% from the previous year and 69.44% above the six-year average. This suggests that while the market remains active, sellers may need to be more realistic with initial pricing as inventory levels rise.
Market Balance Indicators
The ratio between new listings and sales agreed provides insight into market balance. In April 2025, there were 569 new listings against 457 sales agreed, creating a ratio of 1.24:1. This represents a slight shift toward a buyer’s market compared to April 2024’s ratio of 1.01:1.
Despite this shift, overall market activity remains robust, with both supply and demand metrics significantly outperforming long-term averages.
Conclusion
April 2025’s data paints a picture of a healthy, active housing market that has successfully navigated the stamp duty changes with minimal disruption. The substantial increases in properties for sale and new listings, combined with growth in sales agreed figures, suggest strong market fundamentals.
However, the rise in price changes indicates that sellers need to remain realistic with pricing strategies in this increasingly competitive market. The dramatic reduction in fall-throughs and withdrawals points to a more committed buyer pool, which bodes well for market stability in the coming months.
As we move further from the March stamp duty deadline, these metrics will be crucial to watch for signs of longer-term market trends emerging in the UK housing sector.
