Here we go again - asking prices going UP once more ...

After two months of falls, the average price of property coming to the market for sale rises again by 0.9 per cent this month according to Rightmove.

That’s the equivalent of £3,301 and takes the average asking price to £362,438.

The portal says that while a rise in asking prices is expected in January, this is the highest at this time of year since the start of 2020.

“It’s still early days, but this is a more encouraging start to the year than many anticipated” says Rightmove.

Buyer demand is up by 4.0 per cent compared with the same period in the last “normal” pre-pandemic market of 2019. The bounce-back in activity this January was bigger than usual this year, following an extended year-end lull.

The number of prospective buyers sending an enquiry to an estate agent about a property for sale jumped by 55 per cent in the last two weeks, compared with the previous two weeks, an indicator of pent-up demand.

In recent years, this New Year jump in enquiries has been around 45 per cent and it was last higher than this in 2016 - “a potentially positive sign for the year ahead” says Rightmove.

On January 5 the number of people sending a request to an agent to value their home - typically the first step for a future seller - was the third largest on record. And last week was the busiest for home valuation requests since August last year.

However, the portal says that even with the prospect of more sellers coming to market. the number of available homes for sale is still well below long-term norms.

Rightmove housing expert Tim Bannister says: “The seasonal increase in new seller asking prices this January from December is particularly encouraging for movers who are looking for the reassurance of familiar trends and a calmer, more measured market after the rapidly changing and at times chaotic economic climate of the final few months of last year.

“However, while average asking prices did rise in January, they are still £8,720 less than their peak in October.

“The early-bird sellers who are already on the market and have priced correctly are likely to reap the benefits of the bounce in buyer activity, while over-valuing sellers may get caught out as property stock builds over the next few weeks and months, and they experience more competition from other better-priced sellers in their area.

“It will be important for the vast majority of sellers to remember that a drop in your asking price is likely not an actual loss compared with what you paid for it, only a failure to live up to aspirations.”

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