UK Property Market Week 13 Update - More Choice, Less Forgiveness
UK Property Market Week 13 Update - More Choice, Less Forgiveness
Week 13 sharpens the message we have been building for the last couple of months.
This is a market that is active, but far less forgiving.
New listings remain elevated at just over 38,000 this week, still comfortably above long term averages yet down from last week because of the Easter break. The number of homes available to buy have now pushed past 700k mark across the UK, meaning buyers have options, and plenty of them.
And when buyers have choice, they get picky.
Sales agreed have dipped slightly to 23.4k, just below the long-term weekly average as we always have on Good Friday week. (Sales agreed down 11.8% from last week (wk 12), however, they were 10.2% down last Easter, 8.9% down in Easter 2024 and 17.2% lower in Easter 2023)
At the same time, more sellers are adjusting their asking prices as over 13% of homes have reduced their asking price in the last month.
That is not a coincidence. That is the market talking.
Yet, when priced right, buyers will still step forward.
£ per square foot has edged up again, and the proportion of homes selling each month is holding firm at 15.5%.
But here is the stat that matters most.
Only just over half of homes that come onto the market actually go on to sell and complete.
So, the gap between success and failure is widening.
We are no longer in a market where you can “have a go” or “test the market” at an inflated price. You either align with the market… or you sit outside it.
The last few weeks have been consistent.
Week 13 simply makes it clearer.
More homes on the market.
More competition.
More realism required.
And in a market like this, pricing is not a tactic.
It is the difference between moving… and staying put.
Week 13 sharpens the message we have been building for the last couple of months.
This is a market that is active, but far less forgiving.
New listings remain elevated at just over 38,000 this week, still comfortably above long term averages yet down from last week because of the Easter break. The number of homes available to buy have now pushed past 700k mark across the UK, meaning buyers have options, and plenty of them.
And when buyers have choice, they get picky.
Sales agreed have dipped slightly to 23.4k, just below the long-term weekly average as we always have on Good Friday week. (Sales agreed down 11.8% from last week (wk 12), however, they were 10.2% down last Easter, 8.9% down in Easter 2024 and 17.2% lower in Easter 2023)
At the same time, more sellers are adjusting their asking prices as over 13% of homes have reduced their asking price in the last month.
That is not a coincidence. That is the market talking.
Yet, when priced right, buyers will still step forward.
£ per square foot has edged up again, and the proportion of homes selling each month is holding firm at 15.5%.
But here is the stat that matters most.
Only just over half of homes that come onto the market actually go on to sell and complete.
So, the gap between success and failure is widening.
We are no longer in a market where you can “have a go” or “test the market” at an inflated price. You either align with the market… or you sit outside it.
The last few weeks have been consistent.
Week 13 simply makes it clearer.
More homes on the market.
More competition.
More realism required.
And in a market like this, pricing is not a tactic.
It is the difference between moving… and staying put.