In the current market, movers are currently experiencing long delays due to an increased conveyancing backlog, with thanks to the stamp duty holiday, which caused buyers to flock to the market. As a result of this, demand for chain-free properties has climbed across the UK, as homebuyer’s look to try make a fast property purchase.
We take a look at research from homebuying platform, Yes Homebuyers, to discover areas where chain-free property demand has soared and what the chain-free stock looks like in some major UK cities.
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Chain-free demand levels
Due to the current backlog experienced by most solicitors, buyers are turning towards chain-free properties, with the purchase of a chain-free property cutting the conveyancing timeline down from 12 weeks to 4 weeks.
Currently across the UK, 56% of all chain-free properties have been sold, with some cities seeing a substantial increase in demand in the last two months alone. The research found, when comparing March to June 2021, demand for chain-free properties has risen 6% across the UK.
Cambridge saw the biggest increase in demand for chain-free properties with a 10% increase. Swansea saw the next biggest increase demand of 9%. Southampton and Liverpool both saw an 8% increase in demand, Bournemouth and Sunderland saw a 7% increase and Edinburgh, Leeds, Bristol and Newcastle all saw a 6% increase.
Chain-free stock levels
As a result of the increase in demand of chain-free properties, the levels of chain-free stock on the market have dropped across 17 of the 26 major UK cities, with Glasgow having the lowest stock of chain-free properties with only 6% of all properties listed for sale being chain-free.
The area with the highest amount of chain-free stock is Belfast, with 50% of the properties listed for sale being chain-free. Manchester and Cambridge both have 47% of listed properties being chain-free, Sheffield have 45% and Liverpool have 44%.
Although these numbers sound quite high, data suggests that it won’t be long before a majority of these chain-free properties are snapped up.
What has been said?
Matthew Cooper, Founder and Managing Director of Yes Homebuyers, stated “Many homebuyers have now accepted the fact that a stamp duty holiday saving is no longer on the cards, but that they will have to contend with the long market delays that have materialised as a result of the initiative.
“In this respect, a chain-free purchase will, at least, provide some hope of reducing the transaction timeline, and so it comes as no surprise that their popularity has increased substantially in many major UK cities.
“Of course, the downside to this high demand is that chain-free stock levels have dropped across the majority of cities in recent months, although some do present a far better chance of finding one than others.”
Breakdown of the chain-free demand and stock levels in each city
Table to show the current demand for chain-free properties in each city
| Location | Current demand (June 2021) |
| Cambridge | 60% |
| Swansea | 59% |
| Southampton | 59% |
| Liverpool | 52% |
| Bournemouth | 65% |
| Sunderland | 56% |
| Edinburgh | 21% |
| Leeds | 65% |
| Bristol | 71% |
| Newcastle | 49% |
| Newport | 67% |
| Plymouth | 71% |
| Portsmouth | 67% |
| Nottingham | 63% |
| Manchester | 36% |
| Bradford | 53% |
| Cardiff | 51% |
| Aberdeen | 4% |
| Glasgow | 18% |
| London | 40% |
| Birmingham | 46% |
| Sheffield | 66% |
| Oxford | 42% |
| Belfast | 59% |
| Leceister | 49% |
Data from Rightmove and Zoopla
Table to show the current level of chain-free property stock in each city
| Location | Chain-free stock (% of total stock on market) |
| Belfast | 50% |
| Manchester | 47% |
| Cambridge | 47% |
| Sheffield | 45% |
| Liverpool | 44% |
| Southampton | 43% |
| Bristol | 42% |
| Oxford | 42% |
| Portsmouth | 41% |
| Plymouth | 41% |
| Birmingham | 41% |
| Cardiff | 41% |
| Nottingham | 40% |
| Leicester | 39% |
| Sunderland | 39% |
| Bournemouth | 39% |
| United Kingdom | 36% |
| Newcastle | 36% |
| London | 35% |
| Leeds | 34% |
| Swansea | 31% |
| Bradford | 31% |
| Newport | 23% |
| Aberdeen | 13% |
| Edinburgh | 9% |
| Glasgow | 6% |
Data from Rightmove and Zoopla
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Millie is a perfectionist with a passion for property and writing articles. You’ll find her researching the latest housing trends and the newest up and coming areas worth investing in. Read more about Millie here.
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