Price is key as sellers compete for buyers with big July price drop
- The average price of property coming to the market for sale drops by 1.2% (-£4,531) this month to £373,709. With the number of available homes still at a decade-high level, summer sellers are pricing even more competitively to attract buyer interest:
- London is the biggest regional driver of new seller asking price falls this month (-1.5%), led by Inner London (-2.1%)
- Realistic and competitive pricing is key to selling, both improving buyer affordability and stimulating stronger buyer activity:
- The number of sales being agreed is 5% higher than at this time last year
- The number of potential future buyers contacting estate agents about homes for sale is 6% higher than last year
- Average new seller asking prices are now just 0.1% higher than they were a year ago. With lower mortgage rates and average wage rises outstripping both house prices and inflation, overall buyer affordability continues to improve
- Rightmove’s mortgage tracker shows that the average two-year fixed mortgage rate is 4.53%, compared with 5.34% at this time last year, a saving of nearly £150 per month on a typical new mortgage:
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- The markets are currently forecasting two more Bank Rate cuts this year, which would help to further stimulate activity
- At the halfway point of the year, Rightmove is reducing its price forecast for 2025 from +4% to +2%, as the high level of seller competition is limiting price growth, and retaining its prediction of 1.15 million transactions this year
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