The UK’s largest property auctioneer has announced that February was the best ever sales month in the company’s nine-year history.
Auction House says it broke its monthly records for number of lots offered (600), number of lots sold (461) and amount of money raised (£63 million).
The group’s founding director, Roger Lake, acknowledged the market boost created by buyers trying to beat the arrival of the stamp duty surcharge in April.
“I wouldn’t describe bidders’ behaviour as being as ‘frenzied’,” he said. “Instead, we witnessed restrained optimism and sensible bidding, which lead to strong prices being achieved on many lots.”
Commenting on his firm’s achievements, Lake said: “It’s a real milestone to have offered 600 auction lots in a month - a figure that hasn’t been reached by any auctioneer since the credit crunch.”
Auction House has eleven auctions across its various venues this month and is expecting a busy April as well.
“We now move from a buoyant pre-surcharge environment where all buyers were treated equally, to a market that is skewed in favour of those purchasing for owner occupation,” said Lake.
“We expect to see a new norm evolving, with investors accounting for the extra 3% and a growing number of First Time Buyers entering our auction rooms with greater confidence.”
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