28 April 2008House prices fall for seventh month in a row
'Buyers strike' puts prices under downward pressure
House prices fell for the seventh month in a row in April. Average house prices were down across half of the country with the average fall being 0.6% over the month. The annual rate of growth has now slipped to -0.9% - the lowest level since January 2006.
Fewer sales and applicants numbers decline...
April saw both a fall in sales and in applicant numbers. For those sales that did take place, the average time to sell reached 9 weeks, compared to less than 6 weeks a year ago.
Proportion of asking price being achieved also falling...
A year ago sellers were achieving 95.7% of the asking price but this figure has fallen back to 93%, the lowest since January 2005. On a regional basis the proportion of asking price being achieved has fallen the most in London - from 97.4% a year ago to 92.9% today.
Weaker confidence is resulting in a 'buyers strike'...
Increasing uncertainty surrounding the mortgage and housing markets has resulted in weaker confidence from would-be buyers and sellers. The upshot is a 'buyers strike' whereby households are sitting on the sidelines waiting to see how events unfold.
And across the country...
On a regional basis prices were down over the month in all regions with the falls ranging from between -0.5% in both the North and North West and -0.8% in East Anglia and the West Midlands. London meanwhile saw prices slowing rapidly off a high base - here prices are down -2.2% over the last 6 months.
Looking ahead...
The current downward pressure on prices will only start to be reversed once there is a turnaround in buyer confidence - although the timing of this is almost impossible to predict, it will revolve around greater stability in the financial markets and an improved economic outlook.