Property asking costs flat in June says Rightmove

Property asking prices fell from their record high this month – but only by £21, according to Rightmove.

It means the average property on the market is now on sale for £375,110, though they typically sell for less with the average property sale price sitting at just under £289,000 according to the latest data from Halifax.

Compared to June last year, asking prices went up by 0.6 per cent or £2,251, according to Rightmove.

Some areas saw prices grow more, though, particularly in less expensive regions in the North of England. 

Five of the six cheapest areas reached new price records, including the North East where prices rose by 1 per cent over the month, the North West where they rose 0.9 per cent and the East Midlands where they rose 0.7 per cent.

Yorkshire and the Humber saw the highest year-on-year growth at 2.8 per cent, though prices stayed flat on a monthly basis.

By contrast, the higher-priced East of England and London regions were the only ones to see monthly price falls, at 0.5 per cent and 0.3 per cent respectively. 

What has happened to your house price could also depend on its size.  

‘Top of the ladder’ properties, comprising five-beds and detached four-beds, saw a 0.6 per cent price fall over the past month, and the smallest annual increase at 0.1 per cent, Rightmove said. 

The average home in this category now costs £689,810, with the monthly fall attributed in part to higher mortgage rates which are limiting some buyers’ budgets.

Second stepper homes, comprising three and four beds, now cost £343,947 on average having risen 0.2 per cent in the last month and 0.4 per cent on the year.

First-time buyer properties, which Rightmove classes as two-beds and below, saw fell 0.1 per cent on the month to an average of £227,757 though prices increased the most over the year at 0.6 per cent.

Buyers keep calm and carry on amid election

The property portal said the imminent general election had not had a significant effect on the property market, other than perhaps a small decline in the number of higher-priced homes being listed for sale.

In the two weeks since the surprise election announcement, the number of top-end sellers coming to market was 3 per cent lower than a year ago, versus being 11 per cent higher in the previous two-week period, Rightmove said.

However, buyer demand has remained stable and is now 5 per cent higher than in June last year.

In a Rightmove poll of more than 14,000 people, the vast majority (95 per cent) of those planning to move home said that the election would not affect their plans.

Tim Bannister Rightmove’s director of property science, said: ‘The vast majority of respondents say they will carry on with their home-moving plans. 

‘However, some potential sellers appear to be watching and waiting rather than taking action, evidenced by a dip in the number of new sellers coming to market, particularly at the top-end. 

‘This is understandable when many of these sellers have more flexibility over when they act, but overall, it appears to be business as usual for the mass-market.’

Ian Preston, group CEO at Preston Baker estate agents in Leeds, added: ‘The Government’s decision to call a general election hasn’t made an appreciable difference to market conditions. 

‘We saw a small dip last week in listing numbers, but this is easily explained as the traditional dip that we would normally see in the half term week, when more families choose to go away.’