By
Lee Boyce
Last updated at 1:07 PM on 28th November 2011
House price falls were registered in 32 per cent of the country last month as the average property value dipped -0.2 per cent, according to Hometrack research, and it forecast the pace of decline will pick up in months ahead.
The Hometrack Monthly National Housing Survey found that a combination of factors have resulted in house prices falling consecutively for the last 16 months and housing turnover in 2011 may be the lowest for 40 years.
Despite the long run of falls prices are down only 2.3 per cent compared to this time last year, but the report suggested this will accelerate.
House prices to fall faster: Hometrack says the pace of house price changes has tended to follow behind demand and supply – pointing to the pace picking up
Demand from buyers has fallen for the
last four months in a row as the number of new buyers registered with
agents dropped -2.2 per cent this month.
This follows a decline in demand in October and September of -0.2 per cent and -2.6 per cent respectively.
Hometrack predicts that with the supply/demand balance in negative territory there will be an acceleration in price falls in the months ahead – especially as the Christmas period takes its toll.
A weak UK economy, together with turmoil in the eurozone, has meant there has been a rapid reduction in new supply coming to the market. New property listings stuttered over the last three months – this month listings were down by -0.8 per cent.
It comes after the first six months of the year saw a boom in the supply of homes for sale, with a 19 per cent jump in properties for sale.
This year, 840,000 properties are expected to be sold – a figure which is down almost 50 per cent compared to 2007.
Properties that sell are achieving 92.5 per cent hitting of their asking price on average. The finding follows data by Zoopla last week that found 40 per cent of all UK property currently for sale has been reduced in price at least once – it said that average discount was 7.4 per cent.
The average time a property that sells spends on the market rose slightly over the month to 9.9 weeks, but the number of viewings it takes for a sale has remained consistent at 11.1.
Hometrack says the negative economic backdrop means only committed sellers are putting their homes on the market and in a bid to push sales through before Christmas, they are aligning prices to meet what buyers are prepared to pay.
If prices in London drop, scale of headline price falls will accelerate
Across the country, falls were registered in 32 per cent of postcodes. The greatest pressure is in the South West, East Midlands, Wales and North West, where prices fell by over -0.3 per cent this month.
The North West also saw the lowest amount of properties hitting their target price, with 90.7 per cent doing so and houses in the East Midlands are taking the longest time to sell, at 13.5 weeks.
London was the only region not to register falls in property prices, but according to Hometrack, it looks unlikely that the capital will escape the continued turmoil in the financial markets.
And when prices do start to fall in London, the scale of headline price falls will start accelerate.
The research found that unsurprisingly London properties do sell the quickest, with the average property being snapped up in 6.2 weeks, but it is homes in the South East that achieve the closest value to target prices, with 93.8 per cent of properties going for the listed price.
Richard Donnell, director of research at Hometrack, said: ‘The economic and financial backdrop the UK housing market remains far from positive but over the last three years the sector has adapted to an environment where low turnover and constrained finance have become the norm.
‘A mixture of realism over pricing on the part of sellers and low turnover are supporting the headline housing indicators.
‘Indeed 2011 looks set to register the lowest level of housing turnover for 40 years – a trend which Hometrack expects to continue into 2012.’
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Come on people we’ve all lived well now its time to pay up, whats wrong with that ?
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Ha ha Paul PE, I’m right here. Firstly, I don’t recall denying we’re in a stagnant housing market, I’ve made no secret of that – I just think its funny that people expect anything spectacular in the way of reductions. Putting things in perspective, the market’s 3% down over the year, slightly more than the measily 1.5% fall last year but still way above the general consensus of predictions (most economist predictions being 5-10% falls each year). So 3% decline on an average 160k buy price, call it £4700 (sorry no calculator). So, if you’ve rented over this period that’s what you’ve saved, which is less than you’ve paid in rent for the equivalent house. So, your celebrating why exactly? PS. That rents gonna be going up again next year! Anyway, admittedly doomsters, things are pretty dire out there – You may be able to pull out the party poppers next month when HP’s go down another 0.25%. Fill yer boots
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IS LONDON STILL BUCKING THE TREND
– Paul , Worker paying Tax(THE RED ARROW), London, 28/11/2011 16:33@@@@@@@@@@ london fell 1.6% from Sep – Oct 11, so it is now clearly falling into line with the other regions. YoY is now only 0.3% rise with inflation at 5% is catastrophic !
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Ten years ago it was considered one of the best long term investments you could make. I now consider buying a property it the worst mistake I ever made. Unable to sell or move on with life because we’re in neg equity and can’t get another mortgage, and the mortgage company wants additional x% to rent it out. Can’t raise a family in a 1 bed flat! In other words… we’re stuffed (well I am anyway…)
Yes we are, not the bankers or politicians notice.One rule for them, one for us peasants….
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I suspect we are one of the few, if not the only country in the world, that has made an ”Industry” out of the buying and selling of houses. However, the ”fault lines” of such economic strategy is only now becoming increasingly apparent:
Whereas the Victorians manufactured and sold all asunder and to all asunder;
we merely sell the ”Same Houses to Each Other”……therein, in time, a recipe for economic disaster..!
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Ten years ago it was considered one of the best long term investments you could make. I now consider buying a property it the worst mistake I ever made. Unable to sell or move on with life because we’re in neg equity and can’t get another mortgage, and the mortgage company wants additional x% to rent it out. Can’t raise a family in a 1 bed flat! In other words… we’re stuffed (well I am anyway…)
Yes we are, not the bankers or politicians notice.One rule for them, one for us peasants….
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phil, Salisbury, 28/11/2011
I suspect a nice little bungalow in the Fens would be a step up for Boris coming from living in a damp cave in Cheddar and now its even more afforable to boot!!
Hilarious!!!
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Surely the lowest house sales are bungalows in the Lincolnshire Fens.
– Boris Macdonut, Cheddar, 28/11/2011 16:38@@@@@@@@@ rather flippant considering you are a property investor !
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No signs as yet of our usual air head property brigade must be keeping a low profile wonder why??
I know its the latest instalment of the “Slow Motion House Price Crash” movie staring the Land Registry report which cites, sorry to break the news to Joe, Essex, yet again, another HP fall of well its only -0.9%!!! agh well as Joe might well quote ‘Yet more signs of stability” there then!
While even London looks like its deflating fast..I wonder if Rigsby, Rugby the 200+ property tycoon has been out shopping for a new rather discounted hat as he was following last mths NW/Halifax reported HP rises bleating on about eating his own hat if the Land Registry reported contnued HP falls in its lastest release..Just hope he has not got indigestion..may as well fill full of humble pie to boot just to round that little meal off!
Tony, Brigton, wheres this lendeing thaw mate, I still cant see any positive moves on sales volumes, too many negative signs blocking my view!
Hilarious!!!
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It is taking along time for reality to strike home. People are being dragged to reality. House prices are over-priced and must fall.
and please, don’t bame the euro!
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