It takes an average time of 13 weeks from agreeing a sale to moving in, while it typically takes eight weeks for sellers to find a buyer.
Rightmove has urged people looking to move by Christmas – which is in in 18 weeks’ time – to act now.
It takes an average time of 13 weeks from agreeing a sale to moving in, while it typically takes eight weeks for sellers to find a buyer.
Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market analyst, said: “Sellers who come to market in the peak holiday month often have a pressing need to sell and price down accordingly, and are offering ‘summer sale’ prices to entice holiday-distracted buyers.
“The market started its most recent cyclical price upturn in 2010, and since then the average price of property coming to market has gone up by 32%, stretching buyer affordability.
“More substantial discounts are therefore required to tempt warier buyers, with higher house prices also tightening the purse strings of lenders.
“With lacklustre average wage growth, more buyers are bumping up against the tighter lending criteria brought in four years ago following the Mortgage Market Review, which were intended to prevent another boom-and-bust cycle.”
Rightmove found that average asking prices of newly marketed properties dropped by 2.3% this month.
However year-on-year sales agreed numbers (-0.8%) are holding reasonably steady.
