The number of houses being sold across Telford & Wrekin is nearly 70 per cent lower than the same time last year, it has been revealed.

Officials at county estate agency DB Roberts & Partners have compared Land Registry sales figures from the TF postcode area during the third quarter of this year with the same period in 2007.

The survey showed that for every three house sales completed a year ago across Telford & Wrekin, only one has been completed in 2008.

Newport has been worst affected of all, according to the research, with property sales in the TF10 area, taking in Newport, Edgmond, Lilleshall and Church Aston, down by more than 80 per cent. 

Wellington and other areas covered by the TF1 postcode have weathered the downturn best, with a reduction in sales of just under 50 per cent.

“The most affected postcodes in Telford itself were TF3 and TF4, extending from The Rock, through Dawley and Stirchley to Lightmoor, where numbers were down by around 70 per cent on this time last year,” said a spokesman for DB Roberts & Partners.

“TF2 in Oakengates, Trench, Muxton, and Priorslee fared better with a 58 per cent reduction, which is about the same as TF7 for Madeley and district.”

The numbers released by the Land Registry include all sales of residential property including private sales and “right-to-buy” transactions, as well as those sold by all estate agents. 

DB Roberts & Partners said they had excluded newly built homes from the statistics in order to give a comparison only of the re-sale market.

Bill Brookes, chairman of DB Roberts & Partners, said one possibility for the difference in postcodes across Telford & Wrekin could be that lower priced properties were generally holding up better in terms of house sales.

Mr Brookes said: “These are challenging times for everyone in the property industry, but the figures also confirm what we have consistently stated this year, that property is still selling, albeit in smaller numbers.”

He added that homeowners needed to seek out expert advice on the value of their property from agents who knew the local market and were prepared to be honest about managing expectations. 

By Carl Jones