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Home sellers who accept price discounts are selling properties at discounts of 4% or £14,000 on average, according to a website. Zoopla said that while demand for homes to buy is lower than a year ago, the improved choice and realism among sellers is helping boost sales. The website tracks the first asking price and the agreed sales price for many home sales. He said the £14,000 discount is the average average, excluding houses sold without a price reduction.
Demand from home hunters is 43% lower than a year ago, but agreed sales volume is only 16% lower than last year, according to the website.
Sellers have seen significant price increases over the past three years, giving them more flexibility in agreed prices, he added.
Supply levels have recovered and buyers and sellers are not far apart as to where they see prices, meaning deals are closing at an increasing rate.
Home hunters now have more options overall, with the average real estate agent having 25 homes available, up from 14 the year before, Zoopla said.
Rapid rent increases, a strong job market and falling mortgage rates are helping to support home-buying demand, he added.
However, properties take on average around 15 days longer to sell than a year ago. The average time to sell ranges from 28 days in Scotland to 44 days in London, Zoopla said.
He said Scotland, Wales, the North East of England and London are seeing relatively high levels of demand from buyers.
Zoopla said it is seeing a shift in sales to markets that offer better value for money and expects the central London apartment market to see more activity in 2023.
Demand is weakest in areas where prices have spiked particularly during the coronavirus pandemic and where prices are above the national average, Zoopla said.
These are markets where higher borrowing costs affect purchasing power, covering the southern half of England and the Midlands, it added.
The report, which covered March, said: “Comparing sales last month to the same period last year, we see an increase in sales share in the bottom 40% of the market by price.
“We are also seeing a decline in sales share in the most expensive 40% of the market in terms of price.
"This is clear evidence of continued demand from first-time and second-time buyers (former first-time buyers taking their second step up the homeownership ladder). It also indicates more caution on the part of homeowners." existing homeowners.
As we enter the Easter holidays, we can expect rates to hold steady or even drop a bit over the next week.
Richard Donnell, CEO of Zoopla, said: “The housing market is arguably more balanced than it has been for over three years.
“Supply levels have recovered and buyers and sellers are not far apart as to where they see prices, which means deals are closing in leaps and bounds.
“Price levels have been adjusting downward for a year now, but fears of a major price drop are overstated.
“Lower mortgage rates and a strong job market are supporting activity levels for contract movers who need to be realistic about pricing if they really want to move in 2023.
“We expect activity levels to continue to improve steadily over Easter and through the summer and (the second half of the year).
Kevin Shaw, Managing Director of National Sales at Leaders Romans Group (LRG), said: “It is important to note that we see few hesitant sellers and buyers – those on the market today are serious movers.
Matt Smith, a mortgage expert at real estate website Rightmove, said the volume of mortgage rate cuts by lenders has accelerated.
He said: “This reflects the increasing confidence of lenders in the future direction of rates following the Bank of England base rate announcement. And, perhaps just as important, it's a sign that lenders are actively competing for the business of potential buyers.
Smith predicted: “As we head into the Easter holidays, we can expect rates to hold steady or even drop a bit over the next week, partly due to the holidays, but also as lenders assess the impact of recent price revision activity. »
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