Urge to move overcomes election worries as house prices rocket

HOUSE SELLERS’ asking prices have reached a new record high amid signs that people’s moving needs are taking priority over uncertainty surrounding Brexit and the forthcoming General Election, according to property experts.

Officials at the Rightmove website said the average price tag on a home is now £317,281 – marking the second month in a row that asking prices have hit a new record level. Across England and Wales, the average price of property coming to market has lifted by 1.2 per cent or £3,626 monthon-month, after a previous peak of £313,655 in April.

As the country prepares for the General Election on June 8, Rightmove said that while preelection periods often prompt a pause in activity, the recent price growth seen by the firm and “strong” year-to-date numbers of agreed sales indicate that many people are undeterred.

Rightmove director Miles Shipside said: “Whilst all-time high asking prices or economic and political uncertainty could be deterrents to would-be home buyers, this month shows another strong set of figures.

“Demand is exceeding supply in many parts of the country and continues to push up the prices of newly-marketed homes. Spring is in the air and home movers are springing up the housing ladder.”

He added: “What seems to be happening is that moving pressures are understandably taking priority over electioneering and Brexit worries. For many in this group, it seems that moving is definitely on their manifesto.”

Rightmove’s figures also show that asking prices have increased annually across different regions. Asking prices in Wales have seen the smallest annual increase, with a 0.7 per cent uplift taking the average price there this month to £182,769. London has seen the next smallest annual increase, with a 0.9 per cent upswing lifting the average asking price there to £649,864.

The West Midlands has seen the biggest annual jump in asking prices, with a 5.9 per cent increase taking the average asking price to £218,620. The East Midlands and the East of England recorded the next strongest annual asking price growth, both seeing jumps of 4.4 per cent. In Yorkshire and the Humber, the average asking price was £180,672 – a year-on-year rise of 1.9 per cent.