House asking prices fall steeply

15th Nov 2010 11:42

House sellers cut asking prices by the largest amount for nearly three years in October, the fourth fall in the last five months, according to online property group Rightmove. Asking prices were down by 3.2% during the four weeks to 6 November, or the equivalent of £7,500 a house on average.The price of the average property is now £229,379, and takes 102 days to sell, the longest waiting period since Rightmove started its index in 2001.Prices are falling even though the number of new houses coming onto the market is also stating to decline. The number of properties put up for sale fell by 9.1% during the month."Agents report that the Christmas slowdown has come early this year, as both would-be buyers and sellers are adopting a 'wait and see' policy until the direction of next year's housing market becomes apparent," Miles Shipside, director of Rightmove, said."The combination of high unsold stocks, the mortgage famine, a shaky economy and the normal winter slowdown gives an ideal scenario for bargain-hunting buyers," he added.London and the North-West were again the strongest regions for house prices.