Asking prices are way too much says Rightmove

Asking prices for houses edged up just 0.3% over the last month, Rightmove reported this morning, and will have to be slashed – not merely trimmed – if the properties are to sell.

It said that in real terms, because of inflation, house prices are in fact already falling. But there is still a huge gap between asking prices and what is actually achieved.

Rightmove warned that the market is beginning to turn as unsold stock per branch jumped from 71 to 74 in the last four weeks.

With a surplus of properties on the market – Rightmove says there has been a 22% rise in new sellers since the suspension of HIPs – the portal says that sellers everywhere other than in hottest of hotspots will have to cut their prices.

The average asking price for a property on Rightmove now stands at £237,767 – around £60,000 more than actual mortgage-agreed prices recorded by Halifax and Nationwide.

Rightmove commercial director Miles Shipside said new listings are now up 56% on a year ago and that there was a post-HIP party atmosphere.

He added: “Estate agents will get more selective about what price they are willing to market at, and the commitment of sellers to doing what it takes to achieve a sale.

“Serious sellers in all but the most popular hotspots are going to have to reduce their asking prices unless buyer demand recovers after the World Cup.”

He said that might sound like good news for first-time buyers, but warned of the continuing mortgage drought.