Latest research shows drop in house price changes

September 26, 2023 by Brendan O'Neill

Property Market

The latest research has revealed a drop in the year-on-year house price change for the UK, with this mainly down to the market remaining slow over the summer due to interest rate rises.

According to this research from Rightmove, the house price change on an annual basis fell to -0.4% over the course of August. This represents the sharpest decline the market has seen since March of 2019. It also means that the drop of 2% that Rightmove forecasted for the UK housing market during 2023 is well on course to be accurate.

There was a slight rise in the average asking price among people new to the market during the month. This was set at £366,281, but that is still less than would be typical for the housing market at the height of summer, according to Rightmove figures.

The month also saw less selling activity than usual. The number of homes hitting the market was 6% less than the average for the past decade, while the number of completed property sales was 18% fewer than the same time four years ago. One area that did stay comparatively level was enquiries from buyers, which only went down by 1% in comparison with 2019.

Rightmove is suggesting that holidays plus rate increases are the reasons for these figures and has indicated that an autumn uptick can be expected.

Those who have done CeMAP courses will feel that lower house prices might help their clients find their preferred properties.