Sales hit highest level in three years

The volume of homes sold by chartered surveyors in the three months to May was the highest in three years, according to the latest Rics residential market survey.

Surveyors sold an average of 17.9 properties over the period, the highest level since January 2010, in what Rics said was a tentative indication of a pick-up in the residential property sector. Some 30 per cent more chartered surveyors reported rises rather than falls in new buyer inquiries, the highest since October 2009. A net balance of 20 per cent more respondents predicted that house prices would rise over the coming three months.

Peter Bolton King of Rics said: "There is still a very long way to go until we see a full scale recovery but green shoots are beginning to sprout."