Property supply went up 13.3% across the UK in February compared to the previous month, with the number of new listings up in 83.7% of towns and cities, according to online estate agents HouseSimple.com.
In Warwick, the number of new listings rose 76.2%, while in Edinburgh and Carlisle property listings were up 59.7% and 54.6%, respectively.
HouseSimple looks at data from more than 500,000 listed properties to track the number of new properties marketed every month in more than 100 major towns and cities across the UK.
However, some parts of the country did see property supply fall last month. In Bootle the number of new property listings fell 12.6%, while Guildford and Salford saw supply drop 12.4% and 8.5%, respectively.
In London, supply was up just 4.7% in February, less than half that across the whole of the UK, although some areas did see some sizeable rises in listings.
Kensington and Chelsea experienced an uplift of 23.1%, while Lambeth saw property supply increase 20.4% last month.
Alex Gosling, CEO of HouseSimple.com, said: “The market needs a boost in supply and it’s encouraging to see that new listings are up in February, albeit that we would typically expect numbers to rise in the coming months as sellers list their properties in time for the Spring market.
“What’s more encouraging is that new stock levels are higher than October 2016 and only slightly short of September 2016, both traditionally strong months for the property market. Now we need to see buoyant listings figures in March and April because the buyers are definitely there, and thanks to the continued competitive mortgage deals still on offer, they are committed to purchasing.”
UK towns and cities that experienced the biggest monthly increases in new property listings in February
Town/City |
Region |
% rise in new listings in February vs January |
Warwick |
West Midlands |
76.2% |
Edinburgh |
Scotland |
59.7% |
Carlisle |
North West |
54.6% |
Lancaster |
North West |
48.1% |
High Wycombe |
South East |
42.2% |
Darlington |
North East |
40.8% |
Grimsby |
Yorkshire and the Humber |
40.0% |
Chester |
North West |
39.5% |
Hartlepool |
North East |
39.1% |
Stockton on Tees |
North East |
37.7% |
UK towns and cities that experienced the biggest monthly decreases in new property listings in February
Town/City |
Region |
% rise in new listings in February vs January |
Bootle |
North West |
-12.6% |
Guildford |
South East |
-12.4% |
Salford |
North West |
-8.5% |
Chelmsford |
East |
-7.9% |
Nuneaton |
West Midlands |
-7.5% |
Ipswich |
East |
-5.4% |
Hastings |
South East |
-4.5% |
Nottingham |
East Midlands |
-3.3% |
Bolton |
North West |
-3.0% |
Colchester |
East |
-2.1% |
London boroughs that experienced the biggest monthly increases in new property listings in February
London Borough |
% rise in new listings in February vs. January |
Kensington and Chelsea |
23.1% |
Lambeth |
20.4% |
Haringey |
19.4% |
Hounslow |
18.2% |
City of Westminster |
17.1% |
Havering |
13.8% |
Tower Hamlets |
13.6% |
Wandsworth |
11.6% |
Hackney |
9.7% |
Sutton |
9.6% |
