Asking prices bounce up despite warnings on over-pricing

Asking prices have done a mighty jump, Rightmove reported this morning.

In the last month, asking prices have shot up by 3.5% – an average of £8,310, or the equivalent of £297 per day.

The rise looks like a stab at reversing this summer’s falls in asking prices of 4.6% – an average drop of £11,377.

All regions show price increases, with London leading the way at 4.8%. But in the West Midlands, the jump of 3.9% was also above the average, as was the rise of 3.8% in the North-West.

Rightmove has been warning about high pricing, saying that most people will not even view a property if they think it is too expensive. This morning, the site said that new sellers and their estate agents were ‘testing higher prices’.

Rightmove director Miles Shipside warned: “The prospect of a few active selling weeks before the winter slowdown means estate agents are keen to attract fresh stock to try and land more buyers.

“However, this stock-building could backfire if they agree to over-ambitious pricing to please a seller, as it could curb a potential buyer’s enthusiasm to arrange a viewing if the over-priced alarm bell starts ringing.”

According to Rightmove, the average branch has 71 properties on its books, down from the 78 of a year ago, but with much of that stock ‘stuck’ on the market ‘at prices that render it effectively unsaleable’.

Shipside said: “Optimistics may consider lower unsold stock levels and strong pricing to be signs of recovery. However, sellers still need to be mindful that the window of opportunity to sell before the traditional winter slowdown is a narrow one, and they risk being left out in the cold for months.

“In addition, estate agents are reporting that mortgages are still no easier to obtain, with risk-averse lenders nit-picking every detail of the mortgage application paperwork, even from buyers who seem squeaky clean.”

The asking price of properties new to the market this month is considerably to the north of ‘actual’ prices as being quoted by Halifax, Nationwide and the Land Registry.

Rightmove’s figure of £243,168 is £83,682 more than Halifax’s figure of £159,486 for September, and also contrasts with Nationwide’s £163,964. The Land Registry is quoting £163,376 for August.