NAEA: Property market strengthens

The property market is going from strength to strength, the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) reveals today.

According to the NAEA's latest property market survey the number of sales agreed rose rapidly last month, as stable interest rates and employment led to increased confidence among buyers.

But even in this environment, the proportion of first-time buyers fell - leading the NAEA to call on the chancellor to help them in his Budget tomorrow.

"The NAEA and its members await the chancellor’s Budget report with anticipation and encourage any reforms that will help increase the number of first-time buyers purchasing property," said NAEA president, Christopher Hall.

"Eradication of stamp duty for first-time buyers would help enormously but if the chancellor is not feeling in quite such a generous mood perhaps he would raise the entry level [from £120,000] to £150,000."

Last year the chancellor increased the lower threshold for stamp duty in a bid to help first-time buyers - but recent figures show that the vast majority of first-time buyers are still hit by the tax (full story).

First-time buyers aside, the NAEA survey showed a healthy property market.

Sales soared 30 per cent in February, while the gap between asking and selling price fell to 3.5 per cent.

Additionally, the average time taken to sell a property dropped from 18 to 17 weeks while the number of viewings needed to achieve a sale stayed steady at 12.

"It was extremely heartening to see sales increase so significantly for the third month running," said Mr Hall.

"This is a sure sign that although we are operating in a smaller environment, there is no doubt that the housing market is going from strength to strength. The outlook is good for not only a busy Easter holiday period but 2006 as a whole."

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