An overwhelming 98% of would-be vendors would rather receive a remote market appraisal from an estate agent than an in-person assessment, according to Zoopla.

The property portal said that coronavirus and the resulting lockdown are set to transform how people sell their property, as estate agents adapt to social distancing.

Zoopla has recorded a 90.5% month-on-month increase in use of its Property Valuation Reports (PVRs) and Comparables Reports, which help agents with remote valuations, alongside their own local expertise.

“After a 50-day market suspension, our agent partners have told us loud and clear that they want to plough forth and rebuild their businesses, said Andy Marshall, chief commercial officer, Zoopla.

“Central to this is replenishing stock pipelines, without posing a risk to their own health, their team’s health, or that of their vendors.

“With 98% of prospective vendors citing remote market appraisals as their preferred means with which to start their property sale, it makes sense that we’ve registered an uptick in agent use of our PVRs and Comparable reports.”