Sellers lower asking prices

In real terms this means the price of property coming to month is £5,222 cheaper than last month.

Sellers lower asking prices

The price of property coming to market fell by 1.7% this month, the largest November drop since 2012.

In real terms this means the price of property coming to market is £5,222 cheaper than last month.

Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market analyst, said: “New sellers and their agents are reacting to market forces and lowering their pricing aspirations by more and sooner than usual.

“Stretched buyer affordability and the cooling markets in the south and in upper price brackets have combined with the ongoing political uncertainty to change pricing optimism into pricing realism. This is a welcome effort by sellers to minimise the usual pre-Christmas market slowdown.

“Some new-to-the-market sellers and their agents have acted early to try to improve the buying mood and avoid the traditional “buyer humbug” dislike of Christmas housing activity.”

All regions saw a monthly price fall, with most of the largest falls happening in the South.

The largest monthly faller is the South East with an average 2.1% fall (-£8,647).

Shipside added: “Seven years ago price rises started rippling out from the capital into the commuter belt in the South East. That ripple effect has now been reversed, with some of the London market price re-adjustment reverberating out into the commuter belt.

“New sellers of property now coming to market in this region have belatedly lowered their price sights.

“Higher end former hot-spot towns are now among the biggest annual fallers with Rickmansworth (-7.1%), Esher (-6.4%) and Gerrards Cross (-6.0%) now cold spots following price rises of nearly 40% over the seven preceding years.”