17th Aug 2020 04:52
(Alliance News) - The UK housing market enjoyed its busiest month in over 10 years, listings site Rightmove said in its monthly tracker on Monday, bucking the trend of the summer period being a slow one for the sector.
In August, the average asking price fell 0.2% monthly to GBP319,497, though this still represented a 4.6% annual climb.
Rightmove noted the number of sales agreed during the month surged to the highest level since its index began over 10 years ago. And notably, the number of sales was 20% over the previous high.
Rightmove added that the number of new properties coming to the market was the highest since March 2008.
"The rulebook has been rewritten as the post-lockdown mini-boom accelerates rather than slows down. There is normally a seasonal slowdown in housing market activity over the summer months, as both buyers and sellers turn their attention to summer holidays. But this year, home movers have put more property on the market and have agreed more sales than in any month for over ten years, worth a record total of over GBP37 billion," Rightmove said.
Around this time of year, Rightmove noted, prices usually fall. This is because "sellers try to tempt holiday distracted buyers".
The average monthly fall for the last 10 years in August is 1.2%, so the 0.2% fall this time around compares favourably to previous years.
And were it not for a seasonal 2.0% fall in London, prices would have risen monthly, according to Rightmove.
Rightmove Director & Housing Market Analyst Miles Shipside said: "Rather than just a release of existing pent-up demand due to the suspension of the housing market during lockdown, there's an added layer of additional demand due to people's changed housing priorities after the experience of lockdown. This is also keeping up the momentum of the unexpected mini-boom, which is now going longer and faster."
By Eric Cunha; [email protected]
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