The average price of a property coming on the market fell by more than £6,000, month on month, in November, according to a property website.
In the UK, Rightmove reported a 1.7 percent (£6,088) decrease in average asking prices for new sellers this month, bringing the figure down to £362,143.
While asking prices do typically record a fall during this season, the 1.7 percent drop represents the most significant percentage decrease recorded for the month of November in five years, the report said.
Rightmove said the fall indicates that new sellers are increasingly adopting more realistic price expectations from the outset of their marketing, to tempt potential buyers.
Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s director of property science, said: “We’d expect to see a drop in new seller asking prices in the last couple of months of the year, as serious sellers start to separate themselves from discretionary sellers and cut through the Christmas noise with an attractive price to secure a buyer.
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“However, the larger-than-usual drop this month signals that among the usual pricing seasonality, we are starting to see more new sellers heed their agents’ advice and come to market with more enticing prices to stand out from their over-optimistic competition.
“Buyers are still out there, but for many their affordability is much reduced due to higher mortgage rates.
“It now looks like more sellers are understanding Rightmove’s research; that the chances of securing a buyer are much greater if they price right the first time, rather than over-pricing and reducing their price later.”
According to Rightmove, the number of sales being agreed is now 10 percent lower than the same period in 2019, improving from being 15 percent below 2019’s level last month.
Meanwhile, the number of available homes for sale is one percent behind this time in 2019. However, these are averages across Britain and some areas and sectors are faring better than others, the website said.
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While there are yearly house price declines in the Midlands and all Southern regions, by contrast Wales, Scotland and the North of England have seen rises in the price of newly-marketed properties.
The number of sales being agreed in the smallest homes sector (studio, one-, and two-bed properties) is just seven percent lower than 2019’s level. In the largest homes sector (four-bed detached houses and all five-bed plus properties) agreed sales are 14 percent behind 2019.
Ian Preston, managing director at Yorkshire estate agent Preston Baker said: “The market is resilient and more in favour of buyers compared to the past two years.
“We have seen several sellers try to test the market with an over-optimistic price to qualified buyers. However, the consequences of getting it wrong are pronounced, with the data showing that many sellers who don’t get the price right the first time end up wasting a huge amount of time and money.”
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Matt Nicol, managing director at Nicol & Co. in Worcestershire, commented: “Buyers have much more choice than a year or two ago, meaning if sellers price too optimistically, buyers are going to look towards their more competitively priced neighbours.”
However, he noted: “We are starting to see more pricing realism from sellers compared to a few months ago, and activity levels are positive so far in November. There are certainly still buyers out there ready to take the leap if the price is right.
“Two consecutive Base Rate holds, much steadier fixed-rate mortgage deals on offer, and a general feeling that rates may have now peaked, are giving some assurance and confidence to buyers.”
The Bank of England opted to hold the Base Rate for the second consecutive time, which has supported buyer demand and helped to keep it in line with 2019’s level. Now, many will be looking to the forthcoming Autumn Statement for any policy announcements or market incentives.
Mr Bannister said: “While there have been many twists and turns and there are still seven weeks left of the year, the data indicates that there has been more to be positive about in 2023 than many thought there would be at this time last year.
“The upcoming Autumn Statement will now set the tone heading into 2024, particularly if there are any major policy announcements. We hope that the Government has considered the impact on the market of any new policies and that any measures introduced help as many movers as possible.
“An announcement as limited as a mortgage guarantee scheme renewal would be a missed opportunity to provide some support to movers, particularly first-time buyers.”
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