Home Asking Price Index, June 2020: the market reanimates, vendors return with higher prices
The mix-adjusted average asking price for England and Wales rose 0.7% in May, while new sales instructions reached only 43% of May 2019 levels.
This is the June 2020 edition of the Home Asking Price Index, released on 16 June 2020, under the headline:
The Market Reanimates: Vendors Return with Higher Prices
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
- Supply of new sales instructions ticks up across the UK in May (but is only 43% of the May 2019 total) as the lockdown eases.
- Vendors braving the market are confident and are pricing much higher, safe in the knowledge that supply is very low.
- Consequently, the mix-adjusted average for England and Wales has jumped 0.7% since the May reading.
- The North West and Yorkshire show confident price hikes of 1.5% and 1.3% respectively since last month.
- The supply rate of new instructions has recovered the most in London and the least in Scotland.
- The best-performing regions, the North West and Yorkshire, show the lowest rises in Typical Time on Market aside from London and have year-on-year price growth comfortably surpassing that of monetary inflation (3.4% and 3.2% respectively).
- The total sales stock on the market across England and Wales has increased slightly since last month but is still significantly down; 14% year-on-year.
- East of England remains the UK's worst-performing region with the average asking price 1.7% lower than twelve months ago, although a jump of 0.9% this month shows that confidence is rapidly returning.
- Supply in the rental sector across the UK recovers slightly but remains 15% down year-on-year.
Summary
Vendors are re-entering the market and, most remarkably, they are pricing higher. Counter to the doom and gloom that has dominated the media recently, vendors who have been brave enough to place their properties on the market are showing considerable confidence and less caution than might be expected. However, considering the overall lack of supply (there are only around 40% of the new listings one might expect for the month of May), their bullishness would seem justified.
What is blatantly clear is that the situation could have been a whole lot worse. The annualised mix-adjusted average price growth across England and Wales currently stands at +0.8%; in June 2019, the annualised rate of increase of home prices was -0.6%.
Key figures
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Average asking price (England & Wales) | £310,819 |
| Monthly change (England & Wales) | 0.7% |
| Annual change (England & Wales) | 0.8% |
| New sales instructions (UK, vs May 2019) | 43% |
| Total sales stock change (England & Wales, YoY) | -14% |
| Rental sector supply (UK, YoY) | -15% |
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, June 2020, Indexed to May 2004 (Value =100).
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, June 2020
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, June 2020
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, June 2020
Source: Home.co.uk Asking Price Index, June 2020. Note: Average = Mean (days), Typical = Median (days)
Regional tables
UK Asking Prices, Jun-20
| Region | Average Asking Price | Monthly % change | Annual % change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | £189,381 | 0.2% | 0.9% |
| North East | £163,447 | 0.7% | 2.5% |
| Yorks & The Humber | £207,617 | 1.3% | 3.2% |
| England & Wales | £310,819 | 0.7% | 0.8% |
| North West | £213,764 | 1.5% | 3.4% |
| West Midlands | £257,622 | 0.5% | 1.0% |
| East Midlands | £239,832 | 0.5% | 0.8% |
| East | £345,845 | 0.9% | -1.7% |
| Wales | £215,484 | 0.4% | 2.4% |
| Greater London | £519,681 | 0.1% | 0.5% |
| South East | £394,717 | 0.7% | -0.1% |
| South West | £326,728 | 1.0% | 0.9% |
UK Time on Market, Jun-20
| Region | Average Time on Market | Typical Time on Market | Annual % supply change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 312 | 200 | -86% |
| North East | 281 | 171 | -66% |
| Yorks & The Humber | 217 | 132 | -59% |
| England & Wales | 219 | 121 | -62% |
| North West | 231 | 140 | -58% |
| West Midlands | 199 | 126 | -56% |
| East Midlands | 198 | 126 | -57% |
| East | 205 | 129 | -60% |
| Wales | 282 | 179 | -78% |
| Greater London | 237 | 133 | -61% |
| South East | 210 | 131 | -59% |
| South West | 222 | 134 | -58% |
From the director's commentary
"Both the overwhelming demand for mortgage applications and the remarkable confidence amongst vendors bode extremely well for the grand restart of the UK housing market."
Doug Shephard, Director at Home.co.uk
Read the full June 2020 edition (PDF, 6 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 June 2020 edition as published, with punctuation normalised for the web, and are not revised. Later editions may restate them.
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