Flats are accounting for a growing share of residential auction sales as leasehold complications and weaker demand in the conventional market encourage sellers to consider alternative routes.
New analysis from Property Auction Data shows flats accounted for 27.2% of residential auction sales during the second quarter of 2026 – the highest proportion recorded over the period analysed.
For much of 2021 to 2024, flats typically represented around one in five residential auction transactions.
The number sold at auction has broadly doubled since 2021, with flat sales in Q2 this year also 18.1% higher than during the same period in 2025.
REGIONAL GROWTH
The increase is widespread, with flat sales rising across 11 of the 13 regions during the first half of 2026.
Yorkshire and the Humber records the largest percentage increase at 29%, followed by London at 27.6%.
More than 200 additional flats were sold at auction in London compared with the first half of last year, while the South East Home Counties records growth of 16.9%.
The report suggests there is unlikely to be a single reason for the increase.
Landlords reviewing portfolios following changes to the private rented sector could be contributing, alongside challenges involving lease lengths, service charges, ground rents, building safety and major works.
Some of these issues can also affect mortgageability and reduce the pool of buyers available through the traditional sales market.
LOWER PRICE POINTS
Auction is potentially providing another outlet for more complicated stock, with investors, developers and cash buyers able to assess properties individually and price in refurbishment or leasehold issues.
Almost half of flats sold at auction during the first half of the year changed hands for less than £100,000.
Some 60.6% sold below £150,000 and 79.2% for less than £250,000, while just 4.5% achieved £500,000 or more.
AUCTION MARKET EXPANDS
The increase comes amid wider growth in residential auctions.
A total of 15,349 residential properties were sold during the first half of 2026, around 8.4% more than during the equivalent period last year.
Sales increased across 12 of the 13 regions, led among the larger markets by London with growth of 24%.
Yorkshire and the Humber and the North West both record increases of 12%, followed by the South West at 11% and North East at 10%.
Wales is the only region to record a decline, with residential auction sales falling 8%.
More than four in five residential properties sold at auction during the period achieved less than £250,000.
Stuart Collar-Brown, President of NAVA Propertymark (National Association of Valuers and Auctioneers), says: “For professional auctioneers, this is an opportunity to demonstrate the value of expertise.
“A successful auction is about more than securing a sale; it is about delivering a transparent, well-managed process that gives both buyers and sellers confidence.
“As the auction market continues to develop, maintaining those standards will be vital. Professionalism, transparency and good consumer information will help ensure that auction remains a trusted and attractive way to buy and sell property.”
