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Home Sellers Slash Asking Prices

Wed, 19 Nov 2008
Average asking prices for UK properties have fallen by 7 per cent over the last twelve months, according to new figures from property website Rightmove .

The company’s latest house price index reveals sellers have cut prices by 2.9 per cent so far in November, taking the average asking price to £222,979 compared with £229,691 in October.

Rightmove said property sellers are becoming "increasingly desperate" to attract what few buyers remain in the housing market, with many keen on making a sale before the end of the year.

But the property website said that asking prices still look unrealistic compared with the prices that are being achieved by sellers, with estate agents reporting house sales being agreed at around 20 per cent below peak asking prices.

Miles Shipside, commercial director at Rightmove, commented: "Some sellers could avoid months of disillusionment and despair if they started marketing at an asking price a lot closer to where the evidence indicates they are likely to end up."

"While average asking prices have fallen by 7.1 per cent over the past year, in most parts of the country you should look to at least double that discount to achieve a sale."

Shipside added: "Not all sellers will be willing or able to consider offering big discounts especially those struggling with negative equity ."

"But those that do will increase their chances of selling more quickly and could cut out the months of asking price reductions to get to the buyer friendly price that they could have started with."

Just 80,000 sellers put their properties on the market between 11 October and 8 November, the lowest figure recorded by Rightmove since 2002.
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