Property listings have fallen from a peak of 8,535 added each day in February to just 672 on 6th April, according to GetAgent.

The estate agent comparison site said the average number of views per listing has also dropped considerably over the same period, along with the number of new home seller leads, which are down to four from 82.

Searches of buyer and seller keywords on Google are also down -54% and -62% respectively since the middle of February.

GetAgent has developed an interactive dashboard that provides data on housing market activity in real-time, plus sentiment surveys of both sellers and estate agents.

Sellers deeply concerned

The impact of the Coronavirus on seller sentiment is clear, with 42% ranking their concern 10 out of 10 when it comes to the impact on a planned sale, while 46% of buyers said they would not put an offer on a property under current conditions.

The spread of the virus has caused many to reconsider, with 29% of those planning to sell delaying by at least four to six months, with a further 28% expecting delays of between seven months and more than a year.

However, 76% of all respondents still plan to take their property to the market within the next year, despite the current restrictions.

Estate agent perspective

Over half – 56% – of agents ranked their concern over the impact of the Coronavirus on the property industry as a whole at 10 out of 10.

That vast majority – 88% – have chosen not to conduct in-person valuations while social distancing measures are in place.

More than half of the agents surveyed have furloughed over 81% of their employees, while 68% had also significantly reduced advertising and 50% were extremely concerned over cash flow in the next month.

Founder and CEO of GetAgent.co.uk, Colby Short, said: “It’s clear that many sellers are now refraining from selling and the speed at which the pandemic has taken over has caused a breakdown in communication between seller and agent.

“It’s a very worrying outlook for agents as well who are clearly struggling with the financial impact while trying to pivot and keep a sense of operational normality.

“The silver lining is that confidence remains in the market and many will look to transact as soon as possible, while many agents are also doing all they can to keep the cogs turning for the sales that were already underway.”