The number of homes for sale is down by a third compared with what was available before the pandemic.

Demand for housing is so high that, if homes continue to sell at the present rate, 65% of local authority areas will run out of properties to sell in three months or less, according to research by Savills and TwentyCi.

The Outer Hebrides in Scotland has seen the biggest decline in properties for sale, with only 23 homes on the market – a 72% drop compared with two years ago. The Lake District’s neighbouring areas of Copeland, Allerdale and Barrow-in-Furness have seen the number of properties for sale drop by 62%, 58% and 57% respectively.