Property sales fall 11% in August: HMRC

The latest HMRC statistics show that the number of residential property transactions totalled 96,250 in August, 11% lower than July and 9% lower than August 2025.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, transactions are 1% lower than July and 2% lower than August last year.

The figures coincide with recent data from the Bank of England, showing that approvals for house purchases decreased to 54,900 in August, the lowest level seen since December 2023.

Neil Knight, divisional director at Spicerhaart Part Exchange and Group Clients, commented: “A dip in transactions comes as no real surprise given the state of play in the market and wider economy over the past few months. Buyers and sellers have had plenty of reasons to pause and hesitate with so much volatility and uncertainty. Add to this concerns about a potential base rate rise, inflation climbing further and growing speculation around the Budget and this could remain the picture for a little while longer. But the desire to move has not gone away. Much of it is simply stuck and that is where the right support makes all the difference."

Richard Pike, chief sales and marketing officer at Phoebus Software, said: “Transaction volumes have been gradually losing momentum since the spring, and August continued that downward trend. With mortgage approvals also below their recent average, the housing market is going through a sustained period of weakness.

“The problem isn’t aspiration, it’s affordability. The housing market is being held back by buyers’ ability and willingness to transact at current borrowing costs.

“The government’s new support for first-time buyers shows that stimulating demand is firmly back on the policy agenda, but affordability remains the more fundamental question. Lower deposits can help people access the market, but the cost of borrowing will continue to influence how much people can afford to borrow and, ultimately, whether they choose to move.”

Karl Wilkinson, CEO and founder of Access Financial Services, added: “A slight fall in property transactions shows that caution is still playing a part in the housing market, but it would be wrong to read a monthly decline as evidence that buyers have disappeared. These figures reflect completed transactions, so they tell us more about activity from several months ago than what is happening today.

“What is more interesting is the changing composition of mortgage business. Higher-LTV lending is becoming a larger part of the market and remortgaging is accounting for an increasing share of owner-occupier advances, showing that borrowers are still finding reasons to engage with the market even when purchase activity is subdued.

“For advisers, that makes understanding the individual circumstances behind a transaction more important than simply following the headline numbers. There is still business to be done, but it requires advisers to understand the different routes available to borrowers and help them make decisions based on their own circumstances.”