Rightmove has revealed that in August, the average asking price of a UK property dropped to £365,173, marking a £4,795 decline on July’s figures. This comes after asking prices hit a new record last month – reaching almost £370,000, a 9.3 per cent increase on the same period last year.

Mortgage lenders have warned that interest rates could peak to 2.5 per cent by the end of 2022, which could result in a slower pace of growth – or even drop – in property prices as prospective buyers are set to face higher borrowing costs. Further data from Rightmove showed a 13 per cent increase in the number of sellers last month, which provided a much-needed injection of stock for buyers. However, demand still remains high.

Rightmove said that the decline in asking prices was largely in line with summer price trends over the past decade and would likely recover once house hunters returned from holiday breaks. It predicts that house prices will still end up seven per cent higher than 2021, despite a looming economic recession and rising living costs.

This is due to a lack of supply – with available housing stock down 39 per cent compared with 2019 – whilst buyer inquiries are 20 per cent higher than before the Covid outbreak.

16 August 2022