Average house prices fell 2.3% in November, reports Halifax, knocking average house price down by almost £7,000 in November
The speed with which the market has turned has left “many people playing catch-up”, says Jonathan Hopper, CEO of Garrington Property Finders:
“Plenty of sellers still seem to think it’s 2021, not realising that to buyers it feels more like 2008.
“The post-pandemic days of soaring prices and the ‘race for space’ as professionals snapped up homes in the middle of nowhere are over.
“In some popular areas the ongoing scarcity of homes will support prices, and the story will be more of a sharp slowdown in activity rather than a crash in prices.”
We are coming off the back of heightened property price inflation for many years, with those upward pressures finally starting to ease off as a result of rising mortgage rates, a looming recession and the cost-of-living crisis. However, limiting this to some extent is the chronic shortage of housing supply in the UK economy, that is stemming sharper declines.
Many potential house buyers are waiting for mortgage rates to ease and house prices to soften further into next year before reigniting their property searches. The chaos around the mini-budget which sent mortgage rates soaring has also put off potential buyers, who are still hoping that mortgage rates could become more affordable from here.
