Property asking prices have remained flat in June, Rightmove says

• The average property on the market now has an asking price of £375,110
• The cheaper areas in the North experienced the greatest price growth
• Most buyers and sellers don’t let the elections affect their moving plans

Property asking prices have fallen from their record highs this month, but only by £21, according to Rightmove.

It means the average property on the market is now for sale for £375,110, although they typically sell for less, while the average property sales price is just under £289,000 according to the latest Halifax data.

Compared to June last year, asking prices rose by 0.6 percent or £2,251, according to Rightmove.

However, prices rose more sharply in some areas, particularly in cheaper regions in the north of England.

Five of the six cheapest areas hit new price records, including the North East where prices rose 1 per cent this month, the North West where they rose 0.9 per cent and the East Midlands where they rose 0.7 per cent.

Yorkshire and the Humber saw the highest year-on-year growth at 2.8 percent, although prices remained flat on a monthly basis.

In contrast, the more expensive regions of East England and London were the only regions where prices fell monthly, by 0.5 percent and 0.3 percent respectively.

What happened to your home price may also depend on its size.

‘Top of the ladder’ properties, consisting of five-bed and detached four-bed properties, saw a price fall of 0.6 per cent in the last month, and the smallest annual increase of 0.1 per cent, according to Rightmove.

The average home in this category now costs £689,810, with the monthly decline partly attributed to higher mortgage rates, which are limiting some buyers’ budgets.

Second step homes, consisting of three and four beds, now cost an average of £343,947, up 0.2 per cent in the last month and 0.4 per cent in the last year.

Homes for first-time buyers, which Rightmove classifies as two-beds and below, fell 0.1 per cent month-on-month to an average of £227,757, although prices rose the most over the year by 0.6 per cent.

Buyers remain calm and carry on during the election

The property portal said the upcoming general election had not had a significant effect on the property market, apart from perhaps a small drop in the number of higher-end homes for sale.

In the two weeks since the surprise election announcement, the number of top sellers entering the market was 3 percent lower than a year ago, compared to 11 percent higher in the previous two-week period, according to Rightmove.

However, buyer demand has remained stable and is now 5 percent higher than in June last year.

A Rightmove survey of more than 14,000 people shows that the vast majority (95 percent) of those planning to move say the election will not affect their plans.

Tim Bannister Rightmove’s director of property science said: ‘The vast majority of respondents say they will continue with their moving plans.

“However, some potential sellers appear to be watching and waiting rather than taking action, evidenced by a decline in the number of new sellers entering the market, especially at the high end.

‘This is understandable as many of these sellers have more flexibility about when they trade, but overall it seems to be business as usual for the mass market.’

Ian Preston, group CEO of Preston Baker estate agents in Leeds, added: ‘The government’s decision to call a general election has made no noticeable difference to market conditions.

‘Last week we saw a small dip in listings, but this can easily be explained as the traditional dip we would normally see during the half term week when more families choose to go away.’

Renting now is cheaper than buying with a 5% down payment… in the south

Renting has been on average more expensive for years than buying a home of comparable size and paying a mortgage.

However, due to the increase in mortgage interest rates, this is no longer the case for many people with the smallest deposit.

According to research from estate agent Hamptons, potential buyers with a 5 per cent deposit will have to pay an average of £300 more per month in mortgage repayments than if they continued to rent.

That’s based on an average mortgage rate of 6.1 percent, which is the typical rate for a 5 percent deposit mortgage, according to Bank of England data.

Hamptons said buying with a 5 per cent deposit doesn’t work financially in most places south of Birmingham.

In London, paying off a mortgage would cost the average renter an extra £775 a month, which equates to £9,300 a year.

In Scotland and the three northern regions of England (North West, North East and Yorkshire & Humber), the monthly cost difference between renting and buying with a 5 per cent deposit is less than £100 per month.

In the Midlands there is a bigger difference of £117 to £122 a month, Hamptons said.

Rightmove’s research showed a similar trend among those with a 10 percent deposit.

To make the average monthly costs of renting and buying with a 5 percent down payment comparable, the typical mortgage interest rate would have to drop to 4.3 percent.

Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons, said: ‘Despite annual rental growth being around 6 per cent, renting remains more cost-effective than buying for most households across the country.

‘High mortgage rates have pushed buyers with small deposits out of the market, forcing more households to rent for longer. The increase in the monthly costs of buying a home with a small down payment has led to purchases [more expensive] in most places south of Birmingham.’