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Home Asking Price Index, February 2011: sellers slash and prices tumble
Average asking prices in England and Wales fell 0.3% in January, the fourth consecutive monthly drop, while price reductions rose 64% year on year.
- Mix-adjusted average asking price (England & Wales)
- £226,463
- Monthly change in asking prices
- -0.3%
- Annual change in asking prices
- -0.6%
- 6-month change in asking prices
- -1.5%
In this article
This is the February 2011 edition of the Home Asking Price Index, released on 14 February 2011, under the headline:
Sellers Slash and Prices Tumble
The headlines and summary below are the report's own words, with the key figures as it published them, followed by the report's charts and regional tables as printed.
Headlines
- The mix-adjusted average Asking Price for homes on the market in England and Wales has fallen for a fourth successive month: Down 0.3%.
- Monthly asking price falls in all English regions (except East Anglia), Scotland and Wales.
- The number of properties reduced in price has leaped to 65,692 for the month of January, a massive 64% more than in January 2010.
- Typical time on market registered no change at 148 days (median).
- Total properties new to market in Jan 2011 was 14% higher than in Jan 2010.
- Annual change in asking prices: -0.6%.
- 6-month change in asking prices: -1.5%.
Summary
UK market home prices have fallen for a fourth successive month due to weakening buyer demand and increasing supply. Buyer sentiment is very subdued due to concerns over job security, house price stability and mortgage woes. Vendors, whilst not yet panic-selling, are also nervous about the health of the property market and are increasingly quick to action price-cutting: 64% more properties were reduced in price in Jan 2011 than compared to Jan 2010. First-time buyers, the 'life blood' of the property market, are now a rare breed and almost exclusively financed by family. However, Buy-to-Let is taking up some of the slack at the lower end of the market spurred on by a rejuvenated rental sector. Rental demand is strong and will serve to help support house prices in the near term. Mortgage lenders may turn to the rental market to obviate losses currently being made on repossessed properties sold at auction.
Buyer interest has picked up as expected as Spring approaches, although asking prices are still 0.6% lower than where they were last year. Turnover of property on the market is still very low when compared to pre-crisis levels as confirmed by persistently high median and mean Time on Market figures.
Key figures
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Mix-adjusted average asking price (England & Wales) | £226,463 |
| Monthly change in asking prices | -0.3% |
| Annual change in asking prices | -0.6% |
| 6-month change in asking prices | -1.5% |
| Typical Time on Market (median) | 148 days |
| Average Time on Market (mean) | 219 days |
| Properties reduced in price (January) | 65,692 |
| Increase in new instructions vs Jan 2010 | +14% |
Figures are for England and Wales unless the report states otherwise, as published in the edition.
Charts from the report
Laspeyres Index based on Weighted Arithmetic Mean of Weighted Arithmetic Mean of Regional House Prices. [May04 = 100]
Laspeyres Indices based on Weighted Arithmetic Mean of Regional House Prices [May04 = 100]
Laspeyres Index based on Weighted Arithmetic Mean of Regional House Prices [May04 = 100]
Laspeyres Index based on Weighted Arithmetic Mean of Regional House Prices [May04 = 100]
Laspeyres Index based on Weighted Arithmetic Mean of Regional House Prices [May04 = 100]
Source: HM Land Registry
Regional tables
Regional Asking Prices for February 2011, showing gains and losses since August 2010
| Current average price | 6-month change | ToM (days) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wales | £177,692 | +0.3% | 186 |
| Greater London | £342,035 | -0.6% | 112 |
| East Midlands | £170,208 | -0.6% | 160 |
| East Anglia | £240,128 | -0.8% | 129 |
| Scotland | £159,352 | -1.1% | 178 |
| North West | £171,802 | -1.7% | 184 |
| South West | £247,970 | -2.0% | 136 |
| North East | £151,369 | -2.0% | 195 |
| South East | £279,759 | -2.4% | 119 |
| West Midlands | £185,573 | -2.4% | 157 |
| Yorkshire and Humber | £166,769 | -2.5% | 187 |
| England & Wales | £226,463 | -1.5% | 148 |
and current typical Time-on-Market.
Read the full February 2011 edition (PDF, 12 pages)
About the Home Asking Price Index
The Home Asking Price Index measures the change in the prices sellers ask for residential property across England, Wales and Scotland. Today it is computed every month from around half a million advertised homes and is mix-adjusted, so a change in what happens to be on the market does not move the figure; earlier editions state the sample they were built from. Because an asking price is set months before a sale completes, the index runs around five months ahead of completed-sale measures such as the UK House Price Index.
Every edition in the archive, back to October 2006, is listed on the index page. How we measure the UK property market explains the listing data behind it, and today's figures by area are on house prices and rental prices.
Text and figures above are quoted from the February 2011 edition as published, with punctuation normalised for the web, and are not revised. Later editions may restate them.
