House price growth tempered by “lacklustre” Spring Budget

Overall, they went up by 1.5% – or £5,279 – to £368,118, with this also being higher than the historic average in March of one percent. And, with average asking prices still £4,776 below the May 2023 peak – Rightmove believes there’s a window of opportunity to buy.

This is reflected in the fact that the number of sales that have been agreed is now 13% higher than at this time last year while buyer demand is up eight percent when compared to the same period in 2023 – with this being led by the less mortgage-rate-sensitive larger homes sector and London.  

Despite this, the online real estate agency says the market remains sensitive to pricing and external events. For example, its real time data shows the growth in buyer demand was tempered by a “lacklustre” Spring Budget, with it featuring no direct help for first-time buyers or mortgage market innovations.  

In addition to this, the average time it took to find a buyer for a home was 71 days – the longest at this time of year since 2019. This was in part because “attractively priced properties” have been quickly cherry-picked, while over-optimistically priced sellers are taking longer to find a buyer.  

Rightmove’s director of property science Tim Bannister said: “March is typically a strong month for asking price growth, as both buyer and seller activity levels rise and the spring selling season gets underway.

“However, the stronger than usual price growth this March indicates that new sellers are feeling much more confident, with some perhaps being over-optimistic, that there is enough buyer activity and affordability in their local market to achieve a higher price.  

“Despite the above average price increases in this opening three months of the year, asking prices are still £4,776 below their peak in May 2023. For those who can afford to buy and have yet to take action to move this year, this may provide a window of opportunity to buy as we now seem to be past the bottom of the market.

 
“While some sellers are still being over-optimistic with their pricing expectations, there are also more sellers who are aware of the need to be negotiable and realistic, with elevated interest rates compared to recent years still stretching affordability for many buyers.”