Rightmove posted figures this morning that look set to be a last hurrah for the housing market for weeks and possibly months.

Reporting data which seems to prove what a difference a week makes, the portal said that average new seller asking prices have hit a record high, and that the number of sales agreed is up by 17.8%, with the highest number of transactions at this time of year since 2016, and average times to get to sales agreed speeding up.

However Rightmove’s new ‘March’ index in fact barely covers this month at all, and measures the asking prices of 111,464 properties put up for sale between February 9 and March 7.

The seriousness and rapidity of coronavirus was not apparent for almost all of this time, and it was not declared a pandemic until March 11.

Since then, much of normal British life has been cancelled – or, like football matches, the London marathon, the ARLA conference and local elections – postponed.

Today’s figures from Rightmove show a strongly performing housing market in the run-up to what is now a full-scale national emergency.

Rightmove itself notes in this morning’s report that it is “hard to predict how the post-election boost will be affected by the unknown impact of coronavirus” but insists that there has not yet been any sign of a slowdown.

The average new asking price in ‘March’ is £312,626, up 1% on the previous four weeks, and up 3.5% year on year.

Rightmove also notes that the average time to sell was 67 days in this latest period, down from 71.4 days this time a year ago.

It says that sales agreed were up 17.8% on an annual basis, but that new supply rose by just 1.2%.

Director Miles Shipside said: “The market has been waiting for several years for a window of certainty, and 2020 seemed set to be the year when many would look to make a move and satisfy their pent-up housing needs.

“However, the current fast pace of the housing market could now be temporarily affected by the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus.

“We expect that housing market statistics, like other economic indicators, could be prone to volatility over the spring and summer.

“However the market fundamentals are still very sound, hence the current surge in activity, which has included Rightmove’s five busiest days ever. There have been no signs so far of a drop in buyer activity or interest in the housing market.”

Today’s Rightmove survey also quotes an equally optimistic Nick Leeming, chairman of Jackson-Stops, who said: “As an industry we are yet to see the impact of Covid-19 on the market. However, if fewer people opt to holiday abroad over the summer, we could perhaps see an increase in activity in this traditionally slower period.”

Commenting on today’s Rightmove report, north London agent Jeremy Leaf said: “It shows what might have been had the virus not struck so quickly.”

He said his own office has seen “a few” cancelled instructions, with viewings “down significantly”.

• Rightmove is organising a ‘work from home’ seminar this afternoon for agents, with advice from Peter Knight. Details: https://hub.rightmove.co.uk/how-to-make-the-most-of-home-working-as-a-property-professional-with-peter-knight/