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Record jump in unsold properties
Optimistic sellers increased their asking prices by an average of 1.7% in April, despite estate agency branches recording the biggest increase in unsold stock since May 2007.
According to property website Rightmove.co.uk, the national average asking price of a property in England and Wales jumped 1.7% to £235,822. But increased seller numbers have not been matched by an increase in purchasers’ ability to pay, reported the group.
It said that new sellers were being “over-optimistic” in a month which saw the average unsold stock per estate agency branch climb 70 to 74 properties.
Rightmove warned that with interest rate hikes looming, sellers who wanted to take advantage of the traditional spring window needed to adopt “serious sales tactics.”
Miles Shipside, director of Rightmove said: “With buyers still struggling to raise the necessary finance, the net result has been the biggest jump in unsold stock on agents’ books that we have recorded in nearly four years.
“While stock levels normally increase during the first half of the year, this is a larger increase than normal.”
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He added: “With government cuts starting to bite and interest rate rises still expected in the second half of the year, those who are serious about selling should look to price more keenly in the spring selling season.”