The trends that shaped the residential property market in Q2 2026

Landmark’s Q2 2026 Residential Property Trends Report shows a market that remains stable but restrained, with healthy stock levels helping to support activity while lower transaction volumes continue to point to a longer-term challenge for the sector.

While year-on-year comparisons are measured against an unusually strong 2025 baseline shaped by the Stamp Duty Land Tax deadline in March 2025, the data also highlights how affordability pressures and wider uncertainty are continuing to weigh on momentum.

In England and Wales, new property listings across Q2 were only marginally below last year at just 1% compared with Q2 2025, suggesting supply remains broadly steady. Encouragingly, June recorded the highest level of sold subject to contract (SSTC) volumes so far this year and finished just 4% below June 2025, despite Q2 SSTC volumes sitting 7% lower year-on-year.

Scotland saw a softer quarter, with listing volumes averaging 9% below Q2 2025. Sold subject to missives (SSTM) volumes were down 6% and completions were down 5% compared with Q2 2025, while registered sales in April and May were 3% lower year-on-year. Search activity remained broadly flat, suggesting activity has not withdrawn completely but is progressing at a more subdued pace.

Search order volumes in England and Wales were down 8% compared with Q2 2025, with activity peaking in March (up 15% YoY) before easing through the quarter rather than following the usual seasonal uplift. Viewed alongside resilient instruction volumes, this suggests buyers remain active but are taking longer to progress transactions as affordability pressures and market uncertainty influence confidence and decision-making.

Across both markets, the data points to underlying activity remaining present, but at more subdued levels and at a cautious pace. In Scotland, the Scottish Government’s first-time buyer support scheme could provide some impetus from Q4. However, lower transaction volumes remain a longer-term trend overall, reinforcing the need to address the friction and uncertainty that can slow progress from agreed sale to completion.

Longer transaction times continue to reinforce the need for greater speed, transparency and certainty across the homebuying and selling process in England and Wales.

Simon Brown, CEO, Landmark Information Group, said

“Our data for Q3 2026 demonstrates that 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.”

Read the full Q2 2026 Residential Property Trends Report for England & Wales here.

Learn more about the Project 28 Charter and the industry-wide commitment to faster, more certain property transactions here.