Total conveyancing transaction volumes fell by over 10% on a quarterly basis, according to the Q2 2019 Search Acumen Conveyancing Market Tracker.
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Quarterly conveyancing volumes have dropped below 230,000 cases for the first time in two years, a decrease of over 10% compared with Q1, according to the Q2 2019 Conveyancing Market Tracker from Search Acumen, the property data insight and technology provider.
The dip is also a 20% decrease from Q2 2016 – before the EU referendum – where the number of transactions was above 280,000.
The tracker – which monitors business performance and competitive pressures in the conveyancing market – also found that the top 1,000 firms experienced a 10% drop in cases, collectively completing 20,000 fewer transactions compared to Q1 2019.
Andy Sommerville, Director of Search Acumen, commented: “Our latest assessment of conveyancing activity has found that Brexit has truly begun to bite for the sector, even before it has truly arrived. After three years of increasing uncertainty, we’re finally seeing the result of the ‘wait and see’ approach that many homeowners and prospective buyers in England and Wales are taking while Westminster continues to wrangle over the nature of our exit from Europe.
“This Brexit-fuelled market stasis is exacerbating the consolidation trend that has been underway over the last few years.
“But it’s not all doom and gloom. Looking at the figures more closely, we can see that average monthly transactions are still healthier than the pre-referendum.”
