Hammered! Auction sales total hits new high

Auction House has announced its highest-ever monthly sales total, with its sales in May just topping £70m. 

The firm sold 397 properties from 466 offered under the hammer last month, at a success rate of 85.2 per cent.

This means that so far this year Auction House has sold 1,395 lots from 1,709 offered, at a success rate of 81.6 per cent, and has raised a total of over £220m.

The firm’s managing director Jeremy Prior says: “This is an incredible achievement – especially when you take into account the fact that this figure has been achieved almost exclusively for our private sellers. 

“The closure of courts during the Covid 19 crisis means that we have been without our usual selection of repossessions – often seen as the lifeblood of auction stock - from corporate clients.

“No doubt the end of the Stamp Duty holiday at the end of this month has been one of the factors which have driven sales forward – but we have seen enthusiastic bidding and an appetite for purchasing property that has continued undiminished, even while the pandemic and restrictions have continued.”

Prior believes prices are going to continue to hold their own for some time to come.

He explains: “For a house price crash to happen, a mix of certain ingredients has to be in place. For example, during difficult times like these, there would have to be a lack of government intervention and support. But, as we’ve seen from measures like quantitative easing, extensive furlough, and the stamp duty holiday, the government has already done a considerable amount to prop up the market.

“There also seems to be no appetite on the part of the government to pay back the massive debt that has been accrued over the pandemic – which would certainly act as a huge deflationary pressure. So, with all of that taken into account, whilst we may see a cooling off in the market, I honestly think it’s difficult to envisage a house price crash in the near term.”