RICS Residential Market Survey August 2026

Key takeaways

Sales market remains subdued, but indicators continue to improve

New buyer enquiries improved to -19% in August, the least negative reading since January and the fifth consecutive monthly improvement.
Agreed sales improved to -17%, the least negative reading since February and up from the recent low of -38% in April.
Near-term sales expectations improved sharply to -3% from -13%, leaving the outlook broadly neutral.
Twelve-month sales expectations strengthened to +6% from +3%, indicating there will be a small improvement in sales volumes over the year ahead.

Supply pipeline remains broadly flat

New vendor instructions improved to 0% in August from -2% in July, suggesting the flow of new listings has been broadly flat in recent months.
Market appraisals stood at -17% YoY, indicating weaker appraisal activity and suggesting the pipeline of new sales listings is unlikely to expand materially in the immediate future.

House prices remain under downward pressure

The headline house price balance improved marginally to -28% in August from -29% previously and has become progressively less negative since reaching -35% in April.
Regional pressures remained uneven, with London seeing a steeper decline than the UK average, while prices continued to rise in Northern Ireland and the North West.
Near-term price expectations remained negative at -22%, pointing to further price weakness over the next three months.
Twelve-month price expectations stood at +2%, indicating broadly stable prices nationally, although expectations remained negative across London, East Anglia, the South East, Yorkshire & the Humber and the South West.

Rental demand strengthens while supply remains constrained

Tenant demand increased to +18% in August, signalling a slight strengthening compared with the previous month.
New landlord instructions remained weak at -14%, continuing to point to constrained rental supply.
Near-term rental price expectations strengthened to +44% from +33%, signalling increased upward pressure on rents.
Respondents expect UK rents to increase by around 3% over the next twelve months.