Newly instructed rental properties fell across the country in September when compared to August’s numbers, according to Homesearch.

The company, which focuses its services on helping agents target specific homes and win new instructions, as well as track every home currently marketed for both sale and rent by every agent in the country, announced that new lettings instructions were down 16.53% month-on-month.

Sam Hunter, chief operating officer at Homesearch, said “Sometimes big jumps in data mask the real story. I can remember from my agency days that August was always such a busy month that staff were often banned from taking leave. While a more than 10% jump in either direction is significant, October’s numbers will reveal more of the trend that letting agents might expect as we move into winter.”

Homesearch say let agreed numbers were also down 20% from September to August, and on top of the reduction in available stock, there were 8.65% more price reductions recorded in September than in August.

Hunter continued “A drop of 20% might make a good headline but it is more of a reflection in the total stock than anything else. Lettings is such a short, transient market that the percentages we measure across let agreed and reduced always directly relate back to the number of new instructions.”

Overall, asking prices were slightly lower month on month, with a £25 per month real value or 2.33% decrease change in the median asking price across the country.

See the data, including actual figures below: