Home Asking Price Index, July 2018: price cutting nears 6-year high
Price reductions in England and Wales hit their highest level since October 2012, while average asking prices edged up just 0.1% this month.
This is the July 2018 edition of the Home Asking Price Index, released on 12 July 2018, under the headline:
Price Cutting Nears 6-Year High
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
- Total number of properties having their price reduced whilst on the market at highest level since Oct 2012.
- Supply changes show a worsening market for vendors: up by 10% year-on-year (YoY) across the UK, making it the highest June total of new instructions since 2011.
- The biggest supply increases were found in the South East (+18%) and the South West (+21%) YoY.
- Home prices are basically static overall, rising a mere 0.1% this month.
- The total stock of properties on the market in England and Wales continues to rise (up 9.7% YoY) and is now at its highest level since Nov 2014.
- The mix-adjusted average growth for England and Wales is only 1.3% year-on-year: well below the rate of inflation.
Summary
The number of properties on the market continues to grow overall, driven mainly by supply surges in the East, South East and South West. The first regional supply surge occurred in Greater London, where the total stock for sale has now climbed to the 'glut level' last seen in Oct 2010. Hence, discounting of stock on the market has risen accordingly with slow-to-sell properties having their asking prices slashed. In June, a total of £1.6 billion was knocked off asking prices of properties on the market in England and Wales.
The devil is often in the detail, as they say, and whilst the national average figures show little or no growth in prices, analysis of the UK property market at the regional level affords a more refined snapshot of the present market dynamic. Right now, the disparity across the regions is remarkable. As London prices continue to slide further (down 2.7% YoY), Wales is experiencing the most market momentum for a decade while boasting the greatest rate of price growth across the UK (up 6.4% YoY). Between these two extremes lies the rest of the UK property market.
Key figures
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Monthly change in asking prices | 0.1% |
| Annual mix-adjusted price growth (England and Wales) | 1.3% |
| Typical Time on Market (England and Wales) | 80 days |
| Total stock change (England and Wales, YoY) | +9.7% |
| Supply/new instructions change (UK, YoY) | +10% |
| Value knocked off asking prices in June (England and Wales) | £1.6 billion |
Figures are for England and Wales unless the report states otherwise, as published in the edition.
Charts from the report
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, July 2018
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, July 2018
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, July 2018
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, July 2018
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, July 2018. Note: Average = Mean (days), Typical = Median (days)
Regional tables
UK Asking Prices, Jul-18
| Region | Average Asking Price | Monthly % change | Annual % change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | £184,199 | -0.6% | 0.3% |
| North East | £157,872 | -0.1% | 0.4% |
| Yorks & The Humber | £196,907 | 0.8% | 5.3% |
| England & Wales | £310,577 | 0.1% | 1.3% |
| North West | £202,248 | 0.3% | 5.1% |
| West Midlands | £247,925 | 1.1% | 5.4% |
| East Midlands | £233,291 | 0.6% | 4.7% |
| East | £363,823 | -0.3% | 1.4% |
| Wales | £202,378 | 1.0% | 6.4% |
| Greater London | £529,578 | -0.2% | -2.7% |
| South East | £404,120 | -0.2% | -0.4% |
| South West | £328,659 | 0.0% | 2.2% |
UK Time on Market, Jul-18
| Region | Average Time on Market | Typical Time on Market | Annual % supply change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 213 | 84 | 12% |
| North East | 222 | 106 | 1% |
| Yorks & The Humber | 165 | 82 | 3% |
| England & Wales | 155 | 80 | 10% |
| North West | 171 | 91 | 1% |
| West Midlands | 138 | 68 | 6% |
| East Midlands | 129 | 69 | 7% |
| East | 117 | 68 | 16% |
| Wales | 217 | 103 | -2% |
| Greater London | 149 | 82 | 3% |
| South East | 122 | 70 | 18% |
| South West | 137 | 73 | 21% |
From the director's commentary
"So how long will London prices keep falling? This is a key question for the UK market as a whole, as history tells us that what happens first in London happens later to the rest of the regions."
Doug Shephard, Director at Home.co.uk
Read the full July 2018 edition (PDF, 7 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 July 2018 edition as published, with punctuation normalised for the web, and are not revised. Later editions may restate them.
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