UK asking prices slipped by 0.3% to £378,420 in June, a rare decline for the month, according to Rightmove. The drop contrasts with the average 0.4% rise seen in June over the past decade, as sellers contend with the most competitive conditions for buyers in ten years.
The property portal said buyer demand was 3% higher than a year ago, while the number of homes coming to market was 11% ahead. This wider choice has made the market highly price sensitive. The dip follows the end of temporary stamp duty cuts in England and Northern Ireland in April, which added thousands of pounds to many transactions.
Regionally, asking prices fell most sharply in the south-west, down 1.6%, followed by the south-east at 1% and London at 0.9%. These areas also recorded the largest increases in available properties for sale, with buyers disproportionately affected by the stamp duty changes, Rightmove said.
Colleen Babcock, a property expert at Rightmove, said: “It appears that we’re now seeing the decade-high level of homes for sale, and the recent stamp duty increases in England, have a delayed impact on new sellers’ pricing.” She added that agents report sellers need to set a competitive price to find a buyer, and many are responding to that message.
Separate research from the estate agent Hamptons found rental demand weakened in May, with 17% fewer tenants registering than the same time last year. So far this year there have been 1.5 tenants registering for every first-time buyer, almost half the level seen when mortgage rates peaked in 2022 and 2023. Aneisha Beveridge of Hamptons said lower mortgage rates and three years of above-inflation rental growth have made buying cheaper than renting for most, boosting first-time buyer numbers and reducing rental demand.
Beveridge noted that rental growth is now close to its long-term average, suggesting the era of rapid increases is over. However, she cautioned that the Renters' Rights Bill, expected to become law this summer, will shape future landlord appetite. The bill would abolish Section 21 evictions and strengthen tenants' rights to request a pet in the property.
