“We had a good first quarter - the numbers were up across the group and we saw a 13.8 per cent increase in sales compared to first quarter of 2012.”

“The REIV also estimated a 6.4% increase in the number of sales, which whilst significantly lower than the increase we saw across our 80 plus office network, still points to an overall market recovery,” Mike said.

“This result is even better than it actually looks on paper, because in effect we lost an entire sales weekend in March, due to Easter this year, so you could expect a 20 per cent decrease for that month, but we were actually up 10 per cent.”

“We are not back in boom-times and in fact we are still travelling below the 2010 figures, however our results are proof that if agents are prepared to work hard they can achieve great results for our clients. Across the group we have reported an increase in people attending open for inspections, bidding at auction and increased page views on our web advertising, so there are definitely more buyers out there.”

Second quarter figures for the Barry Plant Group are also tracking above the REIV state average. The Group recorded a 78 per cent clearance rate last weekend, as opposed to the 71 per cent recorded by REIV..