The number of new property sales being achieved since the housing market re-opened is at and even above pre-lockdown levels, new data from Zoopla says.
Demand for homes is now 54 per cent higher than at the start of March, as pent-up demand returns.
London appears to be behind other regional markets in England for now as buyers look outside the capital.
Scotland and Wales continue to record low levels of new sales as their markets remain closed.
The biggest increase in sales has been at higher prices with the number of sales of £1m-plus homes 16 per cent above March levels.
Zoopla director of research and insight Richard Donnell says: “The rebound in housing demand over the last month is not solely explained by a return of pent-up demand.
“Covid has brought a whole new group of would-be buyers into the housing market.”
He adds: “New sales in London are lagging behind as buyers look at commuting and moving into the regions.
“Higher asking prices for newly agreed sales means that house price indices may not register immediate price falls.
“Lower asking prices for homes sold over the lockdown period may drag down indices over May, but this new data suggests house price growth is set to remain positive in the next two months.
“We still believe that this spike in demand will be short-lived as the economic impacts of covid start to feed through into market sentiment and levels of market activity in 2020 H2.”
