Landlord instructions to agents continue to decline according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Its monthly snapshot – which is a sentiment survey of its members – shows a net balance of -21% when it comes to landlords in the market. 

Demand is relatively stable with a net balance of -2%.

Some 24% of respondents expect rents to rise in the next three months.

On the sales side, the first time since December 2024, buyer demand has moved out of negative territory, with the net balance for new buyer enquiries rising to +3% in June. 

This marks a noticeable improvement from the -22% reported in May, although RICS says the figure still indicates a period of stabilisation rather than a strong recovery. 

The national net balance for agreed sales improved significantly from previous months, falling to -3%, a marked improvement from the -25% and -28% reported in earlier surveys. 

Despite this positive trend, sales momentum is expected to remain subdued in the near term.

Expectations for sales volumes have turned marginally positive, with a net balance of +6%, a sharp contrast to the -2% recorded in May. However, respondents foresee a broadly flat landscape for sales volumes over the next 12 months.

New instructions to sell have seen a slight decline, with the June net balance dropping to +3% from +7% in May. While this signals a slowdown in the flow of new listings, 16% of respondents reported an increase in market appraisals compared to the same period last year, indicating that supply levels remain relatively healthy.

Tarrant Parsons, RICS Head of Market Research & Analysis, says: “The UK residential market appears to be entering a more settled phase, with demand showing signs of stabilising following a period of volatility. 

“The earlier distortion caused by transactions being brought forward ahead of the Stamp Duty changes now appears to have largely dissipated, allowing underlying trends to re-emerge. 

“Encouragingly, near-term sales expectations have begun to edge higher, pointing to a modest shift in sentiment. 

“That said, confidence in the market remains somewhat delicate, with economic uncertainty at both the domestic and global level still seen as a potential headwind. “