Sun 24 Jul 2022

With house prices continuing to soar, is it really a good time to move?

Property portal Rightmove reports that asking prices have hit a record-high for the sixth month in a row, rising by 0.4% (+£1,354) to £369,968. In London, the average is now £692,828.

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Rightmove’s property expert Tim Bannister says that although the market remains hot, it’s moving ‘from a boil to a simmer’ as we head into the second half of the year. This is because we’re starting to see the huge levels of buyer demand drop ever so slightly compared to the exceptionally busy market of last year. And recently, more sellers have been putting their homes on the market compared to 12 months ago.

House prices keep rising – so is now a good time to move?

“Having more new sellers this month is a win-win for the market,” says Tim. “If you’re thinking of selling your home, you’re likely to achieve a good price, given the sixth asking price record in a row that we’ve now seen.”

For those looking to buy, it means more choice, and a slight easing in competition against other buyers while the market is still moving very quickly.

“In the current fast-changing economic climate, those looking to buy who find a suitable home they can afford may choose to act now rather than wait,” Tim adds.

Will house prices keep rising this year?

While more choice is welcome news, the number of homes on the market remains well below the more normal levels of 2019, meaning there still isn’t enough to meet the continued high demand that we’re experiencing.

With such an imbalance, we may possibly see just small seasonal month-on-month price falls, rather than any significant drops.

“Because of this, we’re forecasting prices will jump by 7% by the end of 2022, rather than the 5% growth we forecasted at the start of the year,” says Tim.

First Time Buyers should then move quickly to potentially save themselves some money on their purchase.