Taylor Scott International News
Asking prices in all parts of the UK increased in May with England and Wales seeing an increase of 0.8% and Scotland up 0.7%, according to the latest index to be published. Year on year prices in England and Wales have now increased by 7.5% and in Scotland by 5.8%, the figures from Home.co.uk show. This takes the average asking price in England and Wales to £296,480 and in Scotland to £177,121 and with buyer activity increasing the firm’s index report suggests that prices will continue rising. Asking prices are still rising strongly in Greater London, up 9.6% year on year and 0.5% month on month to an average of £552,878 while the East of England region is also robust with an annual rise of 12.8% and a monthly rise of 2% to £330,990. The South East has seen asking prices rise by 9.5% year on year and 0.7% month on month to £392,712. Elsewhere in the country growth is more modest with Wales seeing annual growth of 1.9% and monthly growth of 0.8%, taking the average asking price to £185,527. The index report also shows that the supply of property for sale is beginning to increase, up 4% year on year overall but up 22% in Greater London and the typical time on the market is up two days to 78 days over the last month across England and Wales, some nine days less than in May 2015. It suggests that the anticipated slowdown following the extra stamp duty charge for buy to let property and additional homes is already fading away. ‘Buyer activity is up and prices continue to rise across the country. Overall, the property market is in better shape than last year,’ said Doug Shephard, director at Home.co.uk. He explained that significant improvements in marketing times in the North suggest that these formerly stagnant regions are experiencing and uplift in demand. ‘Supply in the North East, North West and Yorkshire remains subdued and we expect prices to rise steadily over the summer months,’ he said. ‘Indeed, the total stock of property for sale remains historically very low despite an uptick in supply in London. Scarcity remains the key price driver. The acute supply shortage in the East of England is driving prices up and this region is now outpacing London and the South East in terms of home appreciation. We anticipate that prices will soon reach their affordability limits, as happened in London, and price rises will be more subdued next year,’ Shephard pointed out. He also explained that market activity in London is slower now than back in 2014 when fierce competition for limited supply was driving up prices at an unsustainable pace. ‘However, the market still has significant momentum and sufficient demand remains to elicit more modest price rises. A notable increase in supply is currently providing more choice for buyers and is attenuating price rises,’ said Shephard. He also pointed out that the underlying fundamentals of cheap borrowing… Taylor Scott International
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