UK housing market gathers momentum at start of 2024 – Rightmove
The average asking prices for UK homes have made the strongest start to the year since 2020, with a jump in buyer and seller activity, reports Rightmove.
Promising activity in the first week of the year
The average asking prices for UK homes have made the strongest start to the year since 2020, with a jump in buyer and seller activity, reports Rightmove.
Average new seller asking prices are up by 1.3% (+£4,571) month-on-month to £359,748, which is the largest December to January increase in prices since 2020, Rightmove’s latest House Price Index report, published today, Monday January 15th, says.
It reports that there has been some promising activity in the first week of the year, markedly stronger than a year ago, with more prospective buyers and sellers seeming to have the confidence to get their 2024 moving plans started early.
The number of new properties that have come onto the market for sale is 15% up on the same period last year.
Buyer demand up
Buyer demand in the first week of 2024 is also 5% up on the same period last year. However, competitive pricing from sellers remains crucial, with the number of new properties coming to market outpacing the rise in demand.
The number of sales agreed is 20% up on the first week of last year, which points to a strong return of buyer confidence when compared with the unsettled post-mini-budget period a year ago.
Since Christmas, Rightmove has seen nine of its ten busiest days recorded for people securing a Mortgage in Principle to see what they can afford to borrow, which is another early indication of movers getting their plans for 2024 in place.
Rightmove reports that the average five-year mortgage rate is now 4.86%, against 6.11% at the July 2023 peak. It says that while there could be more surprises to come, early signs suggest a more stable year for the mortgage market following its volatility from September 2022 onwards.