London sellers are cutting asking prices by an eye-catching £19,500 on average to clinch sales. Zoopla’s recent analysis has revealed that to secure a sale, London property sellers are resorting to significant price reductions, with homes going for an average of 4.6% less than the initial asking price in March. This reduction marks a slight improvement from November’s 6.1% cut but signals a continued lack of confidence in London’s property market.

A Silver Lining – Increasing Supply

On a brighter note, the number of homes hitting the market in London is on the rise, showing an 8% increase.

Richard Donnell, an executive director at Zoopla, said, “Rising wages and falling mortgage rates have boosted consumer confidence and this is feeding into improving levels of housing market activity over the first quarter of 2024. House prices are falling at a slower rate but it remains a buyers market where there is much greater choice of homes for sale. We don’t believe that house prices are about to increase more quickly but there is more buyer interest. Sellers need to remain realistic on where they set the asking price if they are to take advantage of improving market conditions to secure a sale and move home in 2024.”

A Nationwide Reflection

This trend of narrowed asking prices isn’t confined to London; it’s a national phenomenon. Across the UK, sellers are settling for £10,000 less than their initial asking prices, an improvement from November’s £14,250 reduction. Moreover, annual house price inflation has dipped by 0.3%, with London experiencing a 0.4% fall, setting the average home cost at £534,000.

Zoopla anticipates these trends to persist into the latter half of the year as the market adjusts to higher mortgage rates and diminishing buying power.

The Market’s Resilience

Despite the mortgage deal costs, the housing market has shown remarkable resilience. Matt Thompson, head of sales at Chestertons, observed, “In March, the property market witnessed steady demand from buyers although some house hunters decided to pause their search in the hope for major incentives to be announced in the Spring Budget. As this wasn’t the case, the majority of these buyers have since resumed their property search. As a result, March concluded the first quarter of the year with a busy property market – particularly in the capital where demand continues to outstrip supply.”