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The average price tag on a home jumped by just over £1,500 month-on-month in September as the autumn selling season got under way, according to a property website. Across Britain, the typical new seller asking price is £370,257 in September, marking a monthly rise of 0.4% or £1,517. Despite the September increase in prices, the first since May, the average asking price for a home in Britain is 0.1% or £502 lower than a year ago, Rightmove said. It added that the first annual price drop since January 2024 is the culmination of several months of competitive pricing by new sellers over the summer, with the number of sales being agreed now 4% higher than a year earlier. London and the more muted South of England are driving the annual dip in prices, with other areas of Britain being more robust, Rightmove said. In the South West of England, asking prices are down by 1.3% compared with last year, while in the North West they have increased by 3.2%, highlighting the South’s underperformance, the report said. Sellers in the South are facing strong competition. The number of homes for sale in the South of England is up by 9% on this time last year, compared to 2% across the rest of Britain, it added. It also takes an average of five days longer to find a buyer in the South of England than in the North and Wales, Rightmove added. But sales in the South are still higher than a year ago, indicating that buyers are happy to snap up homes at the right price, the report said. Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove said: ‘We’d expect to see a slight uptick in new seller asking prices in September, with the traditional back-to-school season boosting activity heading into autumn. ‘This year’s 0.4% September price rise is a little lower than the norm, which is an average of 0.6% at this time of year. However, prices have now dipped slightly from where they were at this time last year after a summer of competitive pricing by sellers, and it’s the South of England which is driving this small dip. ‘It’s the sensible and attractive seller pricing we’ve been reporting which has been helping to drive more sales activity compared to last year. Static house prices, rising wages, and lower mortgage rates all assist buyer affordability, which has led to an increase in the number of sales agreed compared to a year ago.’ Babcock added: ‘Rumours of property tax changes began swirling in mid-August, and with the budget itself not arriving until the end of November, this kind of extended uncertainty can affect market activity, especially in the higher price brackets. ‘Movers want to be confident in planning their moving costs. Our real-time data has not yet picked up any major shifts, however, it’s understandable that those who could be negatively affected by the rumoured changes might be in the process of reassessing their short- and medium-term plans.’ Matt Smith, Rightmove’s mortgage expert, said: ‘Mortgage rates have edged upwards over the last few weeks as global events have made mortgage financing a little more expensive. Inflation is also proving sticky.’ He added: ‘The rhetoric around mortgages continues to be about how lenders can unlock greater affordability by allowing people to responsibly borrow more, which is encouraging for the market, particularly first-time buyers.’ Another property expert, Matt Giggs, founder of the Giggs Group in Cambridgeshire, said: ‘Sellers who reduced their price expectations over the summer are now creating more realistic conditions for sales, which is keeping things moving. ‘We’re finding that well-presented, competitively priced homes are still attracting strong interest, and the high choice of homes for sale is also encouraging buyers. ‘In Cambridgeshire, we’re seeing a steady market and aren’t feeling some of the drag that may be more apparent in London or further south. ‘However, uncertainty around the budget doesn’t help movers’ confidence, particularly those looking at higher-value homes. These buyers might be more hesitant to act until there’s clarity.’ Matt Thompson, head of sales at estate agent Chestertons in London, said: ‘Over the past months, the dynamics of London’s property market have changed, with some boroughs not experiencing the activity or price growth traditionally associated with a world capital such as London. ‘While this has required buyers and sellers to adjust their approach, it has also created opportunities and enabled some house hunters to find properties that were previously outside their budget. ‘After the summer holidays, we’ve already registered an uplift in inquiries from house hunters who are keen to proceed with their property purchase now as they believe the current market climate to be a temporary window of opportunity. ‘Other buyers feel that they will have more clarity after the autumn budget which could then boost buyer confidence and fuel a sellers’ market sentiment towards the end of the year.’ The figures were released as a separate report, from property firm Hamptons, indicated that, across Britain, newly agreed rents fell by 0.4% annually in August equating to a reduction of about £6 per month. The average monthly rent on a newly let property in August was £1,387. Despite the recent slowdown, rents have risen faster than the consumer price inflation rate over both the past five and 10 years, Hamptons said. Had rents tracked inflation over the past five years, the average tenant would now be paying £1,308 per month typically saving around £950 annually, it calculated. Over a 10-year horizon, rents would stand at £1,253 per month if they had tracked inflation, representing an average annual saving of more than £1,600, according to the research. While the stock of available rental homes has lagged behind 2019 levels for much of the past five years, the gap is narrowing, Hamptons said. Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons, said: ‘After several years of rapid rental growth, the tide is finally turning.’ She added: ‘Over the longer term, rents have consistently outpaced inflation, which means tenants today are paying more than they would have if rents had simply tracked CPI. ‘For the most part, this has mirrored the rising cost pressures facing landlords. But this recent slowdown suggests the market is recalibrating. With affordability stretched and demand softening, landlords are having to adjust to attract tenants.’ The Hamptons lettings index uses data from the Connells Group to track changes to the cost of renting. It is based on achieved rather than advertised rents. By Vicky Shaw, PA Personal Finance Correspondent source: PA Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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