The number of new homes registered rose in the quarter from March to May. Dean Markall, of Hillreed Homes, is in optimistic mood.

Recent figures from the National House-Building Council showing a small rise in new homes registrations are being clearly seen on the ground.

Last year our company had 11 sites on its books whereas this year, there is 19. After delays in securing planning permission from local authorities we now have more places than recent years.

Footfall per site is up on the same period last year, with people taking advantage of today's interest rates.

While the volume of first time buyers has reduced over the years we have experienced customers who are 're-circulating' within the market place.

By this, I mean people who have moved to a larger property and are now looking to downsize, for all types of reasons, but obviously still requiring a quality home.

A brand new home is often first choice for these downsizers, who may be looking for easy upkeep and low energy bills.

The volume of part exchange has also increased and I think this reflects a trend for people with busy lifestyles to hand over the whole business of selling to the experts.

We are also still seeing a steady migration of people from south-east London to the Kent suburbs - and that's not a surprise when you think of all the excellent road and rail links this county offers.

From our perspective, the current property market is quite strong, which has been helped in some measure by the incentives we offer, but I believe is even more due to location of developments and the fact that we have always offered a wide variety of house types.

It is interesting to note that high specification homes of £500,000 or more are selling just as quickly as two and three-bedroom houses.

Hillreed Homes has a wide choice of properties in Kent. Equity share schemes and part exchange are often available. See http://www.hillreed.co.uk/