Now that much of the intense bidding wars from 2022 have subsided, homes are achieving a lower proportion of their asking price on average.
In 2023, a stock squeeze along with sellers coming to the market with more realistic pricing, meant the average seller still achieved 98.7% of what they asked for their home.
At the higher end of the market, where affordability has been most constrained by mortgage rates, the average seller accepted a lower proportion of their asking price. Averaging 96.8% in 2023.
As price growth reverses, and mortgage rates inch downwards we’re seeing the cost of buying once again become cheaper than renting.
At the end of 2023 it was only £20 cheaper to buy the average home with a 75% LTV mortgage rather than renting it. But with rental growth expected to continue apace in 2024 we’re expecting the scales to tip further in favour of buying again.
In 2023 the average home was on the market for 55 days before an offer was accepted. This means it took 19 days longer than in the previous year, and 23 days longer than in 2021 when the market was moving at pace.
However, because of the paperwork taking almost a month (29 days) less, it’s been faster to exchange than any year since the pandemic began.
