Zoopla: One in Three Homes in Falling-Price Areas Before Budget

Zoopla's latest House Price Index, published ahead of Wednesday's Autumn Budget, finds that buyers are still there, but higher mortgage rates are making them more selective and putting pressure on sellers.

What does Zoopla say?

• Speed of sale: homes are selling just as quickly as last year, in an average of 44 days nationally, with faster sales in more affordable areas

• Falling prices: more than a third of homes are now in areas where house prices are falling, up from 12% a year ago

• What would help: Zoopla expects market activity to strengthen once mortgage rates move back below 5%, and says the best thing the Budget could do for property is create the conditions for lower mortgage rates

 

Other market signals

• Mortgage rates: Rightmove says the average two-year fixed rate reached 5.55% in October, up from 5.29% in September, adding around £250 a month to the cost of a typical new mortgage since February

• Asking prices: Rightmove's October index shows new asking prices up 1.0% on the month but 0.1% lower than a year ago

• Supply and sales: Zoopla has reported about 5% more homes for sale than a year ago and agreed sales roughly 6% to 9% below last year. It estimates buyers' purchasing power is down about 9% since January

• Interest in homes: searches in September were 7% higher than a year earlier, the strongest annual rise in about 12 months

What about the Budget?

Zoopla's Donnell said changes to stamp duty could support buyers and sellers, especially in southern England where transaction costs are highest, and that the Your First Home scheme could stimulate demand in 2027 if designed well. The Chancellor delivers the Budget on October 28.