Homes in Leeds on average taking 3 months to sell

The average property now takes nearly a week longer to sell than it did a year ago, according to an analysis of cities and major towns.

In Leeds it takes around 88 days.

Nationally sellers typically face a 102-day wait to see their property snapped up, the report from Post Office Money found.

This is six days longer than in 2017, when the average time period between a property going on the market and being marked as sold or under offer was 96 days.

The report, developed with the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), looked at the average selling times in 35 places across the UK.

It found properties in Edinburgh and Glasgow sell fastest, at an average of 39 and 48 days respectively, with homes in Blackpool taking the longest average time to sell, at 131 days.

The Post Office Money City Rate of Sale report found homes in London take the next longest time to sell, at 126 days on average.

Belfast and Swansea, have seen the biggest fall in the time properties spend on the market - at 17 and 14 days less respectively than last year.

At the other end of the spectrum, properties in Bristol and Luton are taking 10 and 14 days longer respectively to sell than last year.

The report suggested this increase is due to homes being relatively unaffordable in these areas, causing houses to spend longer sitting on the market.

In 2017, homes in Luton cost around nine-and-a-half times wages on average, while those in Bristol cost around 10.9 times wages typically.

Here are Post Office Money's top tips for sellers:

• Invest your money wisely if making improvements to sell a property. Find out what buyers in your area are looking for and what they will value by talking to estate agents and neighbours who have had success.

• Make sure your home is competitively priced. Many factors can impact on this, such as transport links and school catchment areas. Make sure you are using other successful recent sales in your area as a guide.

• If you are able to, be selective when choosing a buyer. Buyers with the finances in place who are in a short or no housing chain may be more attractive as it can lessen the chances of something going wrong.

• Keep lines of communication clear between you and any prospective buyer - a friendly relationship during a time of mutual stress is the best way to ensure the process runs smoothly.

• If an offer does not complete, do not panic. In a competitive housing market this is a common experience but a well-maintained property is likely to attract a new buyer soon