Housing Insight Report: February 2026
The housing market shows steady activity, ongoing challenges with sales agreed rising slightly and stock levels stable, while affordability pressures and longer transaction times continue to strain buyers and sellers. Demand is strong in the rental sector, with significant competition among tenants despite only a modest increase in available properties. Rents have remained relatively stable month to month.
Key statistics
Sales
1. The average number of viewings per available property in February 2026 jumped compared to the previous month, to an average of 2.5 viewings.
2. On average, per member branch, there were around 9.2 homes placed for sale across February 2026.
Lettings
1. The average number of registrations per member branch jumps to an average of 80 in February 2026.
2. The average number of properties available for rent shrank slightly to 11.32 per member branch in February 2026.
Nathan Emerson – CEO Propertymark
“The latest Propertymark data highlights a market that is showing resilience in activity levels, with sales agreed ticking up to an average of 7.3 per branch despite a slight softening in new buyer registrations. However, the most notable and pressing issue for agents is the continued elongation of the transaction process. With 43% of sales now taking more than 17 weeks to reach exchange, this represents a new peak and underlines ongoing inefficiencies within the system.
“Affordability remains stretched for many households, and ongoing global economic uncertainty continues to influence borrowing costs, adding further complexity to the landscape that agents and their clients must navigate. For property professionals, these factors, combined with extended transaction timelines, are increasing fall-through risks and placing additional strain on pipelines.
“In the lettings sector, while we are seeing a modest increase in fully managed instructions, supply remains constrained, and demand continues to significantly outpace availability. Overall, these figures reinforce the need for continued focus on improving transaction speeds, boosting housing supply, and supporting affordability across both sales and lettings markets.”
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