United Kingdom: Asking prices for British homes fell over the last month by more than is usual for the time of year, online property portal Rightmove said on Monday, although it forecast a new upswing in the market for 2025, its monthly report showed on Monday.
Prices fell by 1.4 per cent over the four weeks to Nov. 9, compared with a typical drop of 0.8 per cent for the period, Rightmove's data, which is not adjusted for seasonal variations, showed. Prices were 1.2 per cent higher than a year earlier.
Its survey straddled finance minister Rachel Reeves' October 30 budget, which raised taxes on purchases of second homes, and a Bank of England interest rate cut on Nov. 7.
"There's been a lot of news to digest for home-movers over the last few weeks and it appears that the market may still be chewing it over," Tim Bannister, Rightmove's director of property science, said.
"The big picture of market activity remains positive when compared to the quieter market at this time last year. This sets us up for what we predict will be a stronger 2025 in both prices and number of homes sold."
Rightmove said it expected house prices to rise by 4.0 per cent in 2025, its highest prediction since 2021.
Last week the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said the outlook for the housing market was brightening, although rising market borrowing costs could threaten the recovery in sentiment.
Mortgage lenders Halifax and Nationwide both reported a rise in selling prices in October.