Four weeks into 2026, the picture is becoming clearer. It is still too early for grand predictions, but it is no longer too early to talk about direction. The early weeks are starting to stack up and they are telling a consistent story.
The same caveat on year on year comparisons remains. Early 2025 was artificially inflated by the spring Stamp Duty deadline, which pulled activity forward and distorted the benchmark.
Against that unusually strong backdrop, 2026 can look slightly subdued in places. That comparison, on its own, is still misleading.
Look beyond it and the narrative changes again.
Sales activity in Week 4 continues to run at a healthy pace.
26,060 homes went Sold STC last week, broadly in line with the ten year Week 4 average of 24.4k and leaving year to date sales agreed running 19.1% ahead of 2024. That is not a market losing momentum. It is one where buyers are still stepping forward and committing.
Supply is rising too. New listings climbed to 36,598, comfortably above last week, ahead of the long term average, and materially stronger than both 2024 and the 2017 to 2019 norm. Choice for buyers is improving, which is exactly what you would expect to see in a balanced market.
Despite that increase in supply, pricing remains resilient. House prices edged up by 0.6%, reinforcing the point that this is not a market under pressure. It is a market finding its level, supported by real demand rather than incentives.
The wider context matters as well. Just over half of homes leaving estate agents’ books in January went on to exchange and complete, with the remainder being withdrawn unsold. That split is remarkably stable and underlines a familiar truth. Correctly priced homes, marketed well, are still selling. The rest are opting out.
So yes, it is still early.
Yes, the shadow of early 2025 continues to skew some comparisons.
But taken together, Weeks 2, 3 and now 4 are pointing in the same direction. Sales volumes are robust by historical standards, supply is rebuilding, prices are holding firm, and buyer behaviour looks deliberate rather than rushed.
That is not volatility. That is a market quietly getting on with business.