The areas in the UK where homes are selling at a discount
With improved purchasing power from lower mortgage rates, home prices across the UK are holding up well, new data from realty firm Hamptons shows.
The average property in England and Wales sold for 99.0% of its final asking price last month, up from 98.8% in May 2024. Just 12.8% of homes were sold for more than 5% below their final asking price, the lowest share since September 2022, just before the mini-budget.
Buyers in the East of England are finding it particularly difficult to negotiate discounts, with just 9% achieving a reduction of 5% or more below the asking price, down from 13% in May 2024. Meanwhile, buyers in the North East had more success, with 19% securing such discounts.
The group’s data shows that the £1 million+ market remains the most sensitive to pricing pressures. Nearly one in three (32%) sales agreed over £1 million were sold for more than 5% less than their final asking price in May, the highest proportion recorded in any May since 2020.
This reflects the more discretionary nature of prime market sellers, who are often willing to wait for prices to recover rather than sell at any cost, Hamptons said.
Longer selling times
Although demand has picked up, higher stock levels mean homes are taking longer to sell, Hamptons said.
There are 4% more homes on the market across Great Britain than in May 2024, and 41% more than in May 2019. This gives buyers more choice, but also means the average home that went under offer in May had been on the market for 54 days, up from 48 days for homes sold in May 2024.
Just under a third (31%) of homes sold in Great Britain last month went under offer within 30 days, the lowest proportion recorded in any May since 2020. Homes sold over £1m recorded the biggest increase in time on market, taking an average of 56 days to sell, 11 days longer than in May 2024.
Notably, London homes are now more likely to go under offer within a month than the Great Britain average, with 32% of homes in the capital selling within this timeframe.
This represents a reversal of the trend seen between 2016 and 2024 and reflects the fact that London is one of only two regions where there are fewer homes available to buy than last year, with stock levels down 12% year-on-year, Hamptons said.
The London recovery is primarily driven by its more affordable suburbs, rather than Prime Central London. In Prime Central London, potential sellers run a greater risk of having to sell their homes for less than they bought them for, which significantly dampens their appetite to move and makes them less receptive to low offers.
In fact, only 27% of homes purchased for over £1 million a decade ago have since been sold, compared to 40% of all homes across the country.
