By Legal Futures Associate Landmark Information Group [1]
Landmark Information Group’s Q2 2026 Residential Property Trends Report shows the market remained relatively stable throughout the second quarter of 2026, despite ongoing economic, political and geopolitical uncertainty. The data suggests the industry is resilient but restrained, strengthening the need to implement the Government’s newly announced roadmap for homebuying and selling reform, to help insulate the industry against future external shocks and build consumer confidence.
While year-on-year comparisons for the quarter suggest activity softened across parts of the market, these figures should be viewed in the context of an unusually strong benchmark created by the heightened activity surrounding the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) deadline in March 2025.
Looking beyond the heightened activity in Q1 2025, the data in Q2 2026 points to a market that remains active but cautious. Interested buyers and sellers continue to enter the market, however, many are taking longer to commit as affordability and global uncertainty influence decision making. As a result, transactions are at more subdued levels and progressing at a slower pace.
The data shows that supply remained steady throughout Q2, with listing volumes across England and Wales just 1% lower than the same period last year. Despite a softer June, stock levels remain healthy, leaving buyers with greater choice while sellers continue to make record level price reductions.
Buyer demand strengthened as the quarter progressed and June recorded the strongest month of 2026 so far for new conveyancing instructions, finishing just 4% below June 2025, pointing to a steady flow of new transactions continuing to enter the pipeline despite wider uncertainty.
Search order activity further demonstrates measured buyer behaviour. Rather than following the typical seasonal uplift, search volumes peaked in March before easing through the remainder of the quarter, finishing 8% below volumes in Q2 2025.
Mortgage activity was shaped by borrowers bringing decisions forward, rather than by a fundamental change in underlying demand. Mortgage offers spiked in April as lenders processed a backlog of applications submitted in March, when escalating geopolitical tensions heightened expectations of higher mortgage rates and prompted many borrowers to act sooner. Activity then eased through May and June as this earlier demand moved through the pipeline. Although swap rates eased slightly towards the end of the quarter, they remained above pre-conflict levels, leaving mortgage rates higher than at the start of the year*.
Similarly, Scotland experienced a softer quarter, with new listing volumes averaging around 9% below the same period in 2025 and declining as the quarter progressed. Properties listed earlier in the year remained on the market for longer, contributing to higher stock levels and an increase in homes being marketed at fixed prices.
Search order activity also remained subdued, reflecting the same affordability pressures and wider economic uncertainty influencing buyer behaviour across England and Wales. While the Scottish Government’s new First-Time Buyer relief, introduced at the end of June, is unlikely to influence market activity until later in the year, it has been welcomed by the market and has the potential to support buyer confidence in the months ahead.
Simon Brown, CEO, Landmark Information Group, said:
“Our data for Q2 2026 demonstrates the market remains resilient despite a challenging backdrop. Healthy stock levels and strengthening transaction pipelines show the appetite to move is still there, but affordability pressures and wider uncertainty are influencing how quickly buyers are progressing through the transaction process.”
“While Government and industry cannot control wider economic conditions, we can address the friction and uncertainty within the transaction process itself. As homebuying and selling reform progresses, the focus must be on creating a more transparent and predictable experience, in continued partnership with the sector, that gives consumers greater confidence to move. The data reinforces the need for a more connected homebuying and selling process, where better collaboration and the seamless flow of information help reduce delays, improve certainty and keep transactions progressing, regardless of wider market conditions”
Elizabeth Jarvis, Divisional Director of Legal and Search, Landmark Information Group, commented on property search activity:
“We’d normally expect to see search order activity build steadily through the spring as the market gathers momentum, but that seasonal uplift didn’t materialise this year. Instead, volumes peaked in March before easing through the remainder of the quarter, even as conveyancing instruction volumes continued to strengthen.
“This suggests that affordability pressures, along with wider economic and geopolitical uncertainty, continue to influence decision making. While activity continues to move through the pipeline, buyers are progressing at a more measured pace.”
Rob Gurney, Managing Director of Ochresoft, Landmark Information Group, commented on what the trends mean for conveyancers:
“Positively for conveyancers, the data paints a resilient picture, with a steady stream of new instructions entering the pipeline throughout Q2 and June proving the strongest month of the year so far, with SSTC volumes 7% down overall when compared to Q2 2025. That consistency creates a more predictable workload than the peaks and troughs seen around the Stamp Duty deadline last year.
“The opportunity now is to ensure those transactions continue to progress efficiently through to completion. While firms are seeing encouraging levels of new instructions, longer transaction times continue to slow the pace at which cases leave the pipeline. Reducing those delays will be key to giving consumers greater certainty and helping more agreed sales successfully reach completion.”
Ben Robinson, Managing Director of Landmark Estate Agency Services, Landmark Information Group, commented on estate agency trends:
“Supply has remained resilient throughout Q2, with listing volumes only marginally below last year’s levels and healthy stock levels continuing to provide buyers with plenty of choice. The issue isn’t a shortage of properties coming to market. Instead, sellers are increasingly having to reduce their asking prices to compete for buyers’ attention.
“Encouragingly, buyer demand strengthened as the quarter progressed, demonstrating that people still want to move. However, with greater choice available and wider affordability pressures continuing to influence decisions, buyers are taking longer to commit before agreeing a purchase.”
Mike Holden, Divisional Director of Growth, Landmark Information Group, commented on mortgage and lending activity:
“The mortgage market during Q2 was shaped more by the timing of applications than by any fundamental change in underlying demand. April’s spike in activity reflected lenders processing the backlog of applications submitted in March, when heightened geopolitical uncertainty and expectations of higher mortgage rates prompted many borrowers to bring forward mortgage and remortgage decisions.
“Although activity eased through May and June, that reflected earlier demand moving through the pipeline rather than a weakening market. While swap rates softened slightly towards the end of the quarter, mortgage rates remained above the levels seen at the start of the year, meaning affordability continued to influence borrowing decisions and the pace at which buyers progressed through the market.”
Richard Hepburn, Director of Scotland, Landmark Information Group, commented on trends in Scotland:
“The Scottish market softened during Q2. New listings slowed as the quarter progressed, while properties took longer to sell than in recent quarters. This has given buyers more choice and prompted sellers to be more flexible on price, with a growing number of homes being marketed at a fixed price.
“Affordability constraints and wider economic pressures, seen elsewhere across the UK, continue to influence buyer behaviour in Scotland. While it is still too early to judge the impact of the Scottish Government’s new first-time buyer relief, the measure has been welcomed by the market and could help support confidence and activity later in the year.”
Cross market activity
In England and Wales:
- Listing volumes across Q2 2026 were down 1% compared to Q2 2025
- Sold subject to contract (SSTC) volumes in Q2 2026 were down 7% compared to same quarter in the previous year.
- Search order volumes in Q2 2026 were down 8% compared to Q2 2025.
- Completions in Q2 2026 were up 23% compared to Q2 2025 due to the increase in completions in March 2025 ahead of stamp duty changes which lead to a fall in Q2 2026.
In Scotland:
- Listing volumes across Q2 2026 were down 9% compared to Q2 2025
- Sold subject to missives (SSTM) volumes in Q2 2026 were down 6% compared to same quarter in the previous year.
- Completions in Q2 2026 were down 5% compared to Q2 2025