Pace of demand for buying expected to slow next year
Property website predicts 5% average price rise in 2022
The average price tag on a home across Britain is predicted by a property website to increase by 5% next year. The most competitive housing markets currently are in Scotland, the West Midlands, the South West and Yorkshire and the Humber, Rightmove said.
It predicts these areas are likely to see asking price growth at a higher rate of upwards of 7% next year. By contrast, asking prices in London are expected to increase by around 3%. Rightmove said that its price forecast takes supply, demand and pricing data into account.
Rightmove’s director of property data, Tim Bannister, said an imbalance between supply and demand ‘has resulted in buyer demand per available property being at near record highs, suggesting that the 2021 scenario of multiple buyer bids on a high proportion of properties when they come to market is set to continue in the new year’.
He added: ‘We do, however, expect the pace of rises in 2022 to be slower than in 2021 due to increasingly stretched buyer affordability following this year’s rapid rises in average prices.
‘Slowing in the pace of price rises and activity is likely to be more evident in the second half of the year. Therefore, if sellers are too optimistic on their asking price in the first half of the year, they risk missing the most active part of the market.’
A stamp duty holiday, which recently ended, prompted a rush of buyer activity in 2021 as people looked to make the most of discounts on the tax.
Mr Bannister said: ‘While Rightmove sees a continuing busy market in 2022, we forecast it to be less frenzied than 2021 especially if the current scarcity of properties is eased as more owners decide to come to market in the first half of the year.
‘Movers will still benefit from good mortgage availability and attractive rates even if base rates rise, and more choice of property coming to market and the slower pace of price rises compared to 2021 will encourage some who have held back so far to take action.’