Rightmove PLC said Friday it has experienced the busiest start to the year ever, with site visits conceding as buyers race to hit stamp duty changes.
Visitor numbers to the UK property portal between Saturday and Wednesday rose by 30% from a comparable period a year earlier, despite new locks in England and Scotland. More than six million daily visits to the site were recorded Tuesday and Wednesday alone, Rightmove added.
The number of visitors asking estate representatives about buying a property rose by around 11% compared to the beginning of 2020, while the number asking for rental properties rose by 22%, he said.
“January is usually one of the busiest months of our year when people start making new year’s plans for relocation,” said Rightmove Property Data Director Tim Bannister.
The portal of the building was impacted by the increase to the end of the stamp duty holiday, an increase in people reassessing benefits where they live due to coronary virus infection, and the housing market remaining open to despite strict restrictions.
“We did not know how to start this year with so much change and uncertainty over restrictions, but it has been an inspiration to those who are hoping or need to move to the demand that we have seen so far is at an all – time high in January, “said Mr Bannister.
While the housing market has remained open, there are reports that lenders, valuers and carriers have been hit by bottles, leaving many of these homeowners racing to properties. sell ahead of struggling stamp duty holiday, according to Goodbody Research.
The disappointment added that it expects to see a sharp drop in business in the second quarter of the year after the changes, which could be hampered by a new round of transitional mitigation measures by the government. .
Write to Joe Hoppe at [email protected]