Home 'Bargain Buy' Window Closing

20/07/2009

By Deborah Hyde 20 July 2009

Property website Rightmove says asking prices rose for the fifth time this year in July.
Miles Shipside, commercial director at Rightmove, said: 'There is now clear evidence that there were some fire-sale prices last winter, when a few brave buyers correctly called the bottom of the market. 'In most parts of the country, prices have consistently improved during spring. With growing confidence that we’ve passed the bottom, buyers are more active, although they may discover that many of the best buys have gone,' he goes on.
The comments come as the property website's survey showed a return to rising average asking prices after last month's 0.4% decrease, with a 0.6% increase. The group said the average property asking price was £227,864 in July, down 3.1% since this time last year. Initial asking prices have risen by 6.7% since the beginning of 2009, the group says, adding that there has been a 20% increase in sellers coming to market compared to the previous year-to-date average.
Shipside says this suggests 'we will see the housing market remain in a "steady state" during the second half of 2009'. The benefit of hindsight shows that the lowest ebb of prices, and thus the best time to pick up a bargain, was last winter, he added.
'Prices were in freefall in the second half of 2008, as desperate sellers reduced prices by some 2% a month, yet most buyers still held back, leading to a 50-year low in transactions. 'The window of opportunity to pick up the best buys in popular areas in this phase of the market is therefore closing,' he concludes.
He said buyer activity remains strong, with traffic on Rightmove’s website remaining 'much higher than we would expect during the months of June and July which are typically quieter'. The increased confidence and activity is tempting more sellers to test the market, as they seek to take advantage of the smaller price difference to trade up to a better home,' he said.
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