Chestertons has confirmed that the current market conditions are firmly favouring buyers, with developers across England struggling to sell newly built homes amid economic and political uncertainty ahead of the forthcoming Budget.
The agency reports that a slowdown in buyer activity has coincided with continued delivery of new housing stock, leading to an unusually high number of completed new homes now available for sale.
According to data from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, an estimated 89,100 net additional homes were completed in England between 1 April and 14 September 2025.
The imbalance between supply and demand is creating a rare window of opportunity for purchasers, with developers increasingly willing to negotiate on price and incentives in order to meet end-of-year targets.
NEGOTIATION LEVERAGE
Chestertons’ New Homes division says that, while buyer enquiry levels have dropped this year, stock levels have continued to rise, giving motivated buyers considerable leverage in negotiations.
At the same time, the agency says that buyer confidence is gradually returning, with some purchasers capitalising on the more favourable conditions to secure discounts on fully completed, ready-to-move-into homes, rather than buying off-plan.
MARKET SHIFT
Watson Briggs (main picture, inset), Head of New Homes Sales at Chestertons, says the shift in market dynamics was clearly visible across the business.
He adds: “We have seen a 21% decrease in new buyer enquiries for new homes this year whilst developers carried on completing their projects. This has resulted in a momentary imbalance of supply and demand for completed New Build Homes so there has really never been a better time to buy.
“As developers need to meet their sales targets before the end of the year, buyers are in a particularly strong position to negotiate incentives and price reduction of up to 12%. In addition, house hunters have the opportunity to view the properties in person as they are fully completed and ready to move into rather than being off-plan.”
OCTOBER INCREASE
Despite fewer new enquiries overall, Chestertons reports that motivated purchasers are acting quickly to take advantage of the shift, with the firm’s New Homes division recording a 71% year-on-year increase in October sales.
Briggs says: “Fact of the matter is that there are still buyers out there who want to move into their property as soon as possible. On average, it takes 28 days to exchange contracts for a new home vs up to 121 days for an older property which means buyers could celebrate Christmas and New Year in their brand-new property.”
Chestertons believes the current buyers’ market may prove short-lived as lending conditions gradually improve and greater political clarity emerges following the Budget.
Briggs adds: “We anticipate a release of pent-up demand to drive renewed activity from early 2026, which will be a turning point for the sales market and make for a more competitive property search.”
