Lomond agency brands record strong start to 2023

Lomond-owned agencies have reported a rise in market activity since the start of the year, despite withdrawals and fall-throughs remaining high.

A new market report from the agency acquirer, based on its offices stretching from Aberdeen to Brighton, recorded a rise in instructions per branch, applicants, exchanges, valuations and viewings between December 2022 and February 2023.

Across the network, there were 32 instructions per branch, up from 20 a year before.

The number of applicants per branch rose from 128 to 189 over the same period while the level of exchanges was up from 14 to 16.

There were 59 valuations per branch between December and February, up from 51 a year before, while viewings per instruction rose from 9.1 to 9.8.

Regionally, Manchester and the North West was the most in-demand region with 248 applicants per branch. 

The proportion of withdrawals rose from 33.8% to 41.4% while fall-throughs were up slightly from 30.1% to 30.3% but Lomond predicted this would stabilise as the mortgage market becomes more calm.

The report, compiled with Dataloft, said: “The initial shock to the market following the mini-Budget has subsided and a more sensible and realistic analysis of the current market and its future direction is being witnessed.

“Price moderation is occurring but this is a normal reaction to the unprecedented market conditions of the past two years.”