The property sale and purchase market remained resilient in the second quarter of 2026, with transactions accounting for a larger share of overall instructions as remortgage activity returned to more normal levels following a spike earlier in the year, new data from conveybuddy has revealed.

The conveyancing distributor reported that sale and purchase cases represented 63% of all instructions in Q2, up from 57% in Q1, while remortgage instructions fell back to 37% from 43% as activity normalised after a rush to secure deals ahead of lender product withdrawals and pricing changes in March.

The figures support conveybuddy’s view that the purchase/sale transaction market has remained stronger than some industry commentary has suggested. Adviser usage of its platform also continued to grow, rising by more than 11% quarter-on-quarter.

The company said advisers continued to favour its all-inclusive remortgage product over lenders’ free or fee-assisted legal offerings, particularly for lower-value cases where demand remained concentrated below £349, reflecting a preference for cost certainty and transparent pricing.

It also argued that advisers are looking for more than simply a conveyancing quote; they want transparency around fees, confidence in the firms they recommend, better communication throughout the transaction.

Among lenders, Barclays retained the top spot for all-inclusive remortgage cases, now followed by Nationwide, NatWest and Santander.

Harpal Singh, CEO of conveybuddy, said: "When we published a market update in early June, we suggested some of the commentary around a slowing purchase/sale transaction market was missing the bigger picture. Much of what we felt was going on was more about remortgage activity returning to normal levels following the exceptional surge we experienced in March, rather than a collapse in transactions. These full Q2 figures appear to support that assessment.

“What is particularly encouraging is that transaction activity has improved throughout the quarter and has grown as a proportion of our overall instructions. People are still buying and selling property, advisers are continuing to support those clients and transactions are progressing through the system."

---