Sales agreed declined by 3% compared with last year, which Zoopla attributed to hesitation from buyers amid budget uncertainty, with the most-notable slow down being in higher-value areas.

Despite this, there are now 7% more homes on the market compared with last year, while activity remained strong in certain regions such as Scotland (3%), Yorkshire and the Humber (4%), the South West (1%), and the West Midlands (1%).

However, Wales saw a 9% decrease in sales agreed while the South East and East of England saw 8% and 6% declines respectively, with the capital seeing a fall of 5%.

Meanwhile, house inflation remained steady at 1.3%, remaining flat in Southern England but rising by over 2% elsewhere.

Jeremy Leaf, estate agent and a former RICS residential chairman, commented on Zoopla’s October HPI:
“It’s fair to say worries about the Budget have prompted more buyers and sellers to pause before deciding whether to proceed with their moves.

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“However, that doesn’t tell the whole story. On the ground, we’ve also noticed a general lack of confidence about taking on debt and prospects for the economy despite wage rises still exceeding house-price growth and inflation.

“Buyers are not rushing to make up their minds in view of the considerable choice of property available too.

“Fortunately, a reasonable number of needs-driven buyers still looking to move helps to explain why we’re finding the overwhelming majority of sales agreed are proceeding – albeit more slowly and some only following a little price re-negotiation.”

Amy Reynolds, head of sales at Richmond estate agency Antony Roberts, added: "The housing market is slowing down as we approach the Budget, not in terms of the sales we are agreeing, but in terms of properties we are seeing to value, with other agents reporting similar.

"Vendors have opted not to come on the market in October, which is typically a busy time of year for us with the last push before Christmas.

“Nothing will happen in November, and then we are so close to Christmas it's hard to see how a post-budget bounce will have an impact this year."