Auction data company, Essential Information Group (EIG), says that there has been a surge in the number of people turning to auctions to sell their properties, but there is a greater need for realistic pricing on the part of the vendor.
Despite August typically being a quieter month due to holidays and family commitments, the latest figures, published in their September newsletter, shows that the number of lots offered in August 2023 saw a substantial increase of 47.9% compared to the same period last year.
Moreover, both residential and commercial sectors contributed to this uptick, with residential lots offered rising by 51.5% and commercial lots by 17.3%. However, the percentage of lots sold showed a decrease across the board.
National Auction Analysis
Overall
N.B. Figures in brackets denote the comparative period last year
| August 2023 | June 2023 to August 2023 | September 2022 to August 2023 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 1,773 (1,199) | ▲ 47.9% | 7,671 (6,435) | ▲ 19.2% | 34,950 (28,913) | ▲ 20.9% |
| Lots Sold | 1,130 (814) | ▲ 38.8% | 5,090 (4,599) | ▲ 10.7% | 24,321 (21,897) | ▲ 11.1% |
| Percent Sold | 63.7% (67.9%) | ▼ 6.2% | 66.4% (71.5%) | ▼ 7.1% | 69.6% (75.7%) | ▼ 8.1% |
| Total Raised | £180.3M (£140.1M) | ▲ 28.7% | £886.7M (£1,028.1M) | ▼ 13.8% | £4,679.3M (£4,750.7M) | ▼ 1.5% |
Residential
While the overall percentage of lots sold dipped by 6.2% to 63.7%, the residential sector experienced a 7.9% decline to 64.4%, and the commercial sector improved slightly by 10.2% to 56.4%. Despite fewer properties being sold, the total revenue raised in August 2023 was £180.3m, marking a 28.7% increase from last year’s £140.1m.
The drop in percent sold that we have seen in this newsletter as well as previous editions, shows the need for realistic pricing on the part of vendors and their advisers if they want to ensure a sale, according to the head of EIG. David Sandeman.
He commented: “Many market commentators are reporting on the tougher market conditions, and this is borne out by the numbers we are seeing in the recent monthly newsletters.
“Whilst we do not report directly on ‘withdrawn lots’, we are seeing an increase in lots that are withdrawn prior to auction by the auctioneer and vendor, and in many cases, this could be where there has been little or no interest in the lot at the guide price being quoted.”
Regional variations were also evident, with Northern Ireland and Scotland showing diverging trends. For instance, Northern Ireland saw a whopping 55.3% increase in lots offered but a significant decrease in the percentage sold, dropping by 29.5% to 31.5%.
Conversely, Scotland experienced a 33.9% increase in lots offered and a modest 30.2% increase in lots sold. Overall, the data indicates a busy but selective market, challenging the notion of August as a slow month for property auctions.
| August 2023 | June 2023 to August 2023 | September 2022 to August 2023 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 1,624 (1,072) | ▲ 51.5% | 6,752 (5,511) | ▲ 22.5% | 30,645 (24,465) | ▲ 25.3% |
| Lots Sold | 1,046 (749) | ▲ 39.7% | 4,506 (4,004) | ▲ 12.5% | 21,270 (18,676) | ▲ 13.9% |
| Percent Sold | 64.4% (69.9%) | ▼ 7.9% | 66.7% (72.7%) | ▼ 8.3% | 69.4% (76.3%) | ▼ 9.0% |
| Total Raised | £168.4M (£130.1M) | ▲ 29.4% | £728.1M (£803.7M) | ▼ 9.4% | £3,602.6M (£3,565.7M) | ▲ 1.0% |
Commercial
| August 2023 | June 2023 to August 2023 | September 2022 to August 2023 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 149 (127) | ▲ 17.3% | 919 (924) | ▼ 0.5% | 4,305 (4,448) | ▼ 3.2% |
| Lots Sold | 84 (65) | ▲ 29.2% | 584 (595) | ▼ 1.8% | 3,051 (3,221) | ▼ 5.3% |
| Percent Sold | 56.4% (51.2%) | ▲ 10.2% | 63.5% (64.4%) | ▼ 1.4% | 70.9% (72.4%) | ▼ 2.1% |
| Total Raised | £12.0M (£10.0M) | ▲ 19.7% | £158.7M (£224.4M) | ▼ 29.3% | £1,076.7M (£1,185.0M) | ▼ 9.1% |
Regional Auction Analysis
As is usually the case, variations across all the measurable parameters can be seen across the regions.
East Anglia
(Includes Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 379 (265) | ▲ 43.0% | 333 (229) | ▲ 45.4% | 46 (36) | ▲ 27.8% |
| Lots Sold | 258 (197) | ▲ 31.0% | 226 (170) | ▲ 32.9% | 32 (27) | ▲ 18.5% |
| Percent Sold | 68.1% (74.3%) | ▼ 8.3% | 67.9% (74.2%) | ▼ 8.5% | 69.6% (75.0%) | ▼ 7.2% |
| Total Raised | £39.4M (£37.7M) | ▲ 4.4% | £33.2M (£30.8M) | ▲ 7.8% | £6.3M (£7.0M) | ▼ 10.3% |
East Midlands
(Includes Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Rutland)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 563 (567) | ▼ 0.7% | 490 (481) | ▲ 1.9% | 73 (86) | ▼ 15.1% |
| Lots Sold | 389 (418) | ▼ 6.9% | 333 (353) | ▼ 5.7% | 56 (65) | ▼ 13.8% |
| Percent Sold | 69.1% (73.7%) | ▼ 6.2% | 68.0% (73.4%) | ▼ 7.4% | 76.7% (75.6%) | ▲ 1.5% |
| Total Raised | £71.2M (£73.9M) | ▼ 3.8% | £55.4M (£56.2M) | ▼ 1.5% | £15.8M (£17.7M) | ▼ 10.8% |
London
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 515 (536) | ▼ 3.9% | 479 (489) | ▼ 2.0% | 36 (47) | ▼ 23.4% |
| Lots Sold | 357 (425) | ▼ 16.0% | 331 (391) | ▼ 15.3% | 26 (34) | ▼ 23.5% |
| Percent Sold | 69.3% (79.3%) | ▼ 12.6% | 69.1% (80.0%) | ▼ 13.6% | 72.2% (72.3%) | ▼ 0.1% |
| Total Raised | £144.7M (£236.8M) | ▼ 38.9% | £127.6M (£191.5M) | ▼ 33.4% | £17.1M (£45.3M) | ▼ 62.2% |
North-East
(Includes Cleveland, County Durham, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 502 (436) | ▲ 15.1% | 484 (411) | ▲ 17.8% | 18 (25) | ▼ 28.0% |
| Lots Sold | 363 (289) | ▲ 25.6% | 352 (273) | ▲ 28.9% | 11 (16) | ▼ 31.3% |
| Percent Sold | 72.3% (66.3%) | ▲ 9.0% | 72.7% (66.4%) | ▲ 9.5% | 61.1% (64.0%) | ▼ 4.5% |
| Total Raised | £28.6M (£24.8M) | ▲ 15.3% | £25.6M (£22.0M) | ▲ 16.6% | £3.0M (£2.8M) | ▲ 5.2% |
North-West
(Includes Cheshire, Cumbria, Isle of Man, Lancashire, Merseyside)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 1,128 (937) | ▲ 20.4% | 1,025 (817) | ▲ 25.5% | 103 (120) | ▼ 14.2% |
| Lots Sold | 734 (647) | ▲ 13.4% | 665 (579) | ▲ 14.9% | 69 (68) | ▲ 1.5% |
| Percent Sold | 65.1% (69.1%) | ▼ 5.8% | 64.9% (70.9%) | ▼ 8.5% | 67.0% (56.7%) | ▲ 18.2% |
| Total Raised | £80.9M (£83.7M) | ▼ 3.4% | £70.5M (£67.8M) | ▲ 4.0% | £10.4M (£16.0M) | ▼ 35.0% |
North-West Home Counties
(Includes Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Middlesex, Oxfordshire)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 513 (413) | ▲ 24.2% | 468 (366) | ▲ 27.9% | 45 (47) | ▼ 4.3% |
| Lots Sold | 348 (327) | ▲ 6.4% | 318 (291) | ▲ 9.3% | 30 (36) | ▼ 16.7% |
| Percent Sold | 67.8% (79.2%) | ▼ 14.4% | 67.9% (79.5%) | ▼ 14.6% | 66.7% (76.6%) | ▼ 12.9% |
| Total Raised | £76.9M (£108.9M) | ▼ 29.3% | £68.5M (£88.0M) | ▼ 22.2% | £8.4M (£20.8M) | ▼ 59.4% |
Northern Ireland
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 73 (47) | ▲ 55.3% | 57 (37) | ▲ 54.1% | 16 (10) | ▲ 60.0% |
| Lots Sold | 23 (21) | ▲ 9.5% | 19 (17) | ▲ 11.8% | 4 (4) | ▼ 0.0% |
| Percent Sold | 31.5% (44.7%) | ▼ 29.5% | 33.3% (45.9%) | ▼ 27.5% | 25.0% (40.0%) | ▼ 37.5% |
| Total Raised | £1.8M (£1.9M) | ▼ 5.5% | £1.6M (£1.4M) | ▲ 12.0% | £0.3M (£0.5M) | ▼ 50.7% |
Scotland
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 340 (254) | ▲ 33.9% | 224 (149) | ▲ 50.3% | 116 (105) | ▲ 10.5% |
| Lots Sold | 112 (86) | ▲ 30.2% | 77 (59) | ▲ 30.5% | 35 (27) | ▲ 29.6% |
| Percent Sold | 32.9% (33.9%) | ▼ 2.9% | 34.4% (39.6%) | ▼ 13.1% | 30.2% (25.7%) | ▲ 17.5% |
| Total Raised | £10.5M (£8.4M) | ▲ 25.6% | £5.0M (£4.6M) | ▲ 9.4% | £5.5M (£3.8M) | ▲ 44.9% |
South-East Home Counties
(Includes Channel Islands, East Sussex, Essex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Surrey, West Sussex)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 1,221 (1,005) | ▲ 21.5% | 1,086 (858) | ▲ 26.6% | 135 (147) | ▼ 8.2% |
| Lots Sold | 792 (739) | ▲ 7.2% | 702 (649) | ▲ 8.2% | 90 (90) | ▼ 0.0% |
| Percent Sold | 64.9% (73.5%) | ▼ 11.7% | 64.6% (75.6%) | ▼ 14.6% | 66.7% (61.2%) | ▲ 9.0% |
| Total Raised | £172.4M (£195.9M) | ▼ 12.0% | £142.6M (£156.2M) | ▼ 8.8% | £29.8M (£39.6M) | ▼ 24.7% |
South-West
(Includes Avon, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Isles of Scilly, Somerset, Wiltshire)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 616 (507) | ▲ 21.5% | 510 (409) | ▲ 24.7% | 106 (98) | ▲ 8.2% |
| Lots Sold | 468 (390) | ▲ 20.0% | 384 (315) | ▲ 21.9% | 84 (75) | ▲ 12.0% |
| Percent Sold | 76.0% (76.9%) | ▼ 1.2% | 75.3% (77.0%) | ▼ 2.2% | 79.2% (76.5%) | ▲ 3.5% |
| Total Raised | £92.9M (£87.8M) | ▲ 5.9% | £73.1M (£68.0M) | ▲ 7.4% | £19.8M (£19.8M) | ▲ 0.5% |
Wales
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 538 (381) | ▲ 41.2% | 463 (312) | ▲ 48.4% | 75 (69) | ▲ 8.7% |
| Lots Sold | 332 (267) | ▲ 24.3% | 294 (215) | ▲ 36.7% | 38 (52) | ▼ 26.9% |
| Percent Sold | 61.7% (70.1%) | ▼ 12.0% | 63.5% (68.9%) | ▼ 7.8% | 50.7% (75.4%) | ▼ 32.8% |
| Total Raised | £37.7M (£34.3M) | ▲ 9.7% | £32.2M (£26.0M) | ▲ 23.6% | £5.5M (£8.3M) | ▼ 34.0% |
West Midlands
(Includes Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands, Worcestershire)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 717 (547) | ▲ 31.1% | 642 (471) | ▲ 36.3% | 75 (76) | ▼ 1.3% |
| Lots Sold | 511 (413) | ▲ 23.7% | 455 (355) | ▲ 28.2% | 56 (58) | ▼ 3.4% |
| Percent Sold | 71.3% (75.5%) | ▼ 5.6% | 70.9% (75.4%) | ▼ 6.0% | 74.7% (76.3%) | ▼ 2.1% |
| Total Raised | £76.0M (£72.4M) | ▲ 5.0% | £61.0M (£52.9M) | ▲ 15.3% | £15.0M (£19.5M) | ▼ 22.8% |
Yorkshire and The Humber
(Includes North Humberside, North Yorkshire, South Humberside, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire)
| June 2023 to August 2023 | Total | Residential | Commercial | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lots Offered | 566 (540) | ▲ 4.8% | 491 (482) | ▲ 1.9% | 75 (58) | ▲ 29.3% |
| Lots Sold | 403 (380) | ▲ 6.1% | 350 (337) | ▲ 3.9% | 53 (43) | ▲ 23.3% |
| Percent Sold | 71.2% (70.4%) | ▲ 1.1% | 71.3% (69.9%) | ▲ 2.0% | 70.7% (74.1%) | ▼ 4.6% |
| Total Raised | £53.8M (£61.6M) | ▼ 12.7% | £32.0M (£38.3M) | ▼ 16.3% | £21.7M (£23.3M) | ▼ 6.8% |
The EIG figures are based on sales data provided to us by the auctioneers
