Average asking prices for residential properties in England and Wales have hit a new record of more than £313,000 during April, according to property website Rightmove.April's average of £313,655 was 1.1 per cent higher than in March and surpassed the previous record of £310,471 reached in June last year.

Upward pressure on prices

Rightmove said the number of house sales being agreed was also at its highest for this time of year, since before the credit crunch, adding to the upward pressure on prices in a market still badly affected by a shortage of properties.Miles Shipside, director of Rightmove, pointed to signs of a “strong spring market” which looked likely to offset any uncertainties caused by the calling of the June 8 general election. “Indeed, in locations where choice of suitable property is limited hesitation could mean losing out to others who still decide to act,” he said.“Strong buyer activity this month has led to ten per cent higher numbers of sales agreed than in the same period in 2016,” he added. “This large, year-on-year disparity should be viewed cautiously as the comparable timespan in 2016 saw a drop in buy-to-let activity with the additional second home stamp duty.“However, they are also up by 3.8 per cent when compared to 2015. With the growth in household numbers and new-build supply struggling to keep pace, demand is strong and has led to the highest sales agreed numbers at this time of year since the heady, pre-credit-crunch levels.”

First-time buyer market record

Rightmove said the largest price increases had been recorded in the first-time buyer market where the average for a property with up two bedrooms now stood at a record £194,881 – 6.5 per cent higher than the average at this time last year.According to Rightmove, the average property in England and Wales is now taking just 65 days to sell, representing the lowest figure since October 2016, while estate agents have on average 56 properties on their books, an increase from the traditional Christmas period slowdown, but down from 59 in April 2016.The company said that the annual price rise of 2.2 per cent across all sectors was the lowest year-on-year increase for four years, with asking prices in London and NE England now lower than a year ago. In London, the average was down 1.5 per cent, to £636,777, while the North East saw a 0.7 per cent fall, to an average of £150,350.

Prices still rising

By comparison, the East of England saw average asking prices rise by 5.3 per cent over the year, to £349,269, while the West Midlands recorded a five per cent increase to reach an average of £215,784.Nick Leeming, chairman of Jackson-Stops & Staff estate agents, commented, “Today’s figures demonstrate the blooming of a spring market which appears to be in good health as we see the highest number of sales agreed at this time of year since 2007. First-time buyers are once again underpinning the market, with demand for one and two bedroom homes pushing up annual asking prices by 6.5 per cent.“The speed and efficiency of the market is also improving – it now takes 14 days less to sell a property than it did at the start of the year which shows that buyers, sellers, banks and solicitors are coming together to ensure the market continues to move.“What a pity then that we may be risking this fantastic momentum with a snap general election that could now result in buyers holding off making any snap decisions of their own until the results are known in June – the start of the traditionally quieter summer period.”

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• Sales of £1 million apartments surge to new high in London
• UK property market lacking impetus, surveyors report
• UK house prices reach new high, but rate of increase slows

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Jeremy Duncombe, director of Legal & General Mortgage Club, added, “Until we start to see the promises from this year’s housing white paper put into action, the cost of entering the home-ownership club will continue to rise. Great news for home-owners, but not for first-time buyers trying to break away from 'generation rent'.“For far too long now, our housing market has not been meeting the demands of an average first-time buyer and this desperately needs to change. There is simply not an adequate supply of affordable housing across all tenures.“The housing minister needs to finally address the imbalance between supply and demand which will start to restructure our housing market once and for all, and we hope that the focus on the upcoming election isn’t an excuse to lose focus on the housing white paper.”For related news and features, visit our Residential Property section.Access hundreds of global services and suppliers in our Online Directory  Get access to our free Global Mobility Toolkit

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