The number of residential properties offered at auction rose by 32% in the second quarter of 2007. The increase was pushed by repossessions, as affordability conditions deteriorated following interest rate rises, according to research published today by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
In the second quarter of 2007 there were 5,120 residential properties sold at auction, the highest number of sales in over two years and a 22% rise on the previous quarter. Rising interest rates in 2007 have increased the number of repossessions which have been showing up in the number of lots offered for auction. Residential lots offered at auction should continue to pick up with the RICS estimating that repossessions could rise to in excess of 45,000 in 2008, amounting to 124 repossessions per day.
The highest concentration of auction activity took place in the North West of England, where 826 properties were sold. The North West has seen the biggest quarterly pick up in repossession orders of any UK region and has also witnessed the largest number of repossession orders outside London six months prior, which may be now materialising into actual repossessions. Merseyside previously saw a particularly acute rise in growth in repossession orders during Q4 2006 rising by 60% on the previous year.
