Are houses slow selling at the moment?

[Nextdoor55]

We've got our house on the market & we're finding that it is very slow, no viewings at all - went on market about a month.
We live in the sticks & our property is very particular I think with another house attached to it but I'm wondering, are sales slow at the moment?
Anyone else?

I think many sellers are clinging to the hope that the very low interest rates we had previously were a new normal to which we will soon revert.
My view is that around 5% is the normal to which we will revert. This means that banks won't lend enough for people to afford the overpriced properties and people will face the choice of selling now at a realistic price or not selling at all.
Those who don't have to sell will take their places off the market, those who need to sell will have to drop.
Because we can all now research sold prices very easily we can all see that prices are dropping and no one will stand for overpriced properties!

@Nextdoor55 I hope your new agent copes up with a great marketing strategy for you and that you manage to achieve what you after.

Not here. Three sold in two weeks on my road. It's mad but we are in prime position for commuting.

Presumably you don't get know the size of the gap between the asking price and the selling price?

Very slow here too. I know someone who has reduced twice, listed with a second agent, gets the odd viewing but no offers, been on the market 3mths+ desirable area.

I've just had an asking price offer accepted a place 2 days after it went on the market. It had about 15 people wanting to view it.

That is very quick compared to most places. Can I ask roughly where you are? I ask because a lot of Home Counties, commuting territories have fallen a lot, including the extremely desirable St Albans; that's well over 10% down from peak now and according to recent reports has fallen quite a lot in the last year: https://www.hertsad.co.uk/news/24059481.st-albans-house-prices-fall-25k-past-year/ and even more according to the Ottaproperty blog: https://otta.property/may_2024_raw_data_analysis

We’re sitting in rented looking for a place to do up in St.Albans Gerrards Cross, Beaconsfield, Marlow, Harpenden, Berkhamsted, and all those areas are a bit sticky. They’re full of old money / big money but also a lot of the formerly smug 2x£100k ers mortgaged up with a couple of SUV’s on tick, and they’re not so smug as they were now rates are 6% ish…

you have to remember that on top of the visual drops in price there’s also inflation which is devaluing the stock as well.

prices in real terms are dropping at well over 10% a year. Two onions in Waitrose ate £1.40 ffs!

Those are all really nice places. They've become areas of choice for those on top 1% salaries, many of whom have made huge amounts from asset price inflation in addition. I know that prices in Herts have fallen (as per article) but don't follow Berks particularly.
Agree that houses have fallen considerably in real terms, although lots of people only seem to consider nominal. Also agree that lots of people are living on credit, those on excellent salaries as well as those with very little. It's a mess!

if you’re on 2x£100 then you’re pretty smug with your 3x joint mortgage of £600k at 1%, but it gets a bit shit at 6%, especially if you have a couple of big cars on lease as well at another £6-800 a month each.

I have one such friend who is feeling decidedly sick right now and in denial.

I really can only see a more substantial reset which is why we’re in rented.

I agree that we are v likely to see a reset in prices.
People will be much less smug when they lose their jobs in a recession. Your poor, over stretched friend will likely be joined by others in difficult positions. It's pretty horrible but this over leveraged 'everything bubble' has gone on quite long enough.

lol.. Well, he definitely didn’t consider himself poor at 0.5 - 1% interest rates, but that’s in the past.

the other thing he doesn’t see (doesn’t want to see) is that his (their) income is based on Disneyland good times. If one of the two of them took a salary hit - which is more likely than not hen it’s gonna hit the fan.

weve had a solid 20 years of no particular risks and I just think that’s changed

@Farting I didn't mean poor as in the opposite of rich! I meant that I had some sympathy with his situation. In truth, I have a lot more sympathy from people who simply wanted to buy a home for themselves or their family, who will likely get caught up in this coming mess, and less for those who have over leveraged in a crazy way.

whilst employment is high and repossession rates relatively low there is unlikely to be a dramatic crash / fall
Prices are more likely to fall via inflation eating into their value

I agree with that. I feel like recent evidence from the various house prices indexes (& office for national statistics) is suggesting house prices are rising slightly in most areas. But if you take inflation into account they will actually be stagnating or falling slightly in many areas in real terms.

Look to be falling in nominal and real terms. Actual prices - England and Wales - on completed sales using geometric means.

From Otta data

https://otta.property/may2024rawdataanalysis

True but unemployment is rising so the situation may well change.

No doubt Labour will need to raise taxes to deliver some improvements, this year or next (get it done and out of the way) and that burden is felt by the people who pay mortgages.

I do some admin in a local agency, 5 hours a week...everything is selling fast after few viewings....east london.

Nothing much coming on market here. South Manchester, fairly sought after and expensive area. I bought Ex H out this time last year just because I couldn’t face the hassle of coordinating his house move ( he’s hopeless and it wouldn’t have happened otherwise) plus my own and 25 years worth of stuff to shift. I can manage the mortgage but wouldn’t be averse to downsizing from a 4 bed house.
Really hoping things pick up soon.

Do you think we are heading for a recession? That’s not the story I’m picking up generally (not an expert by any means). We are planning to put our house on the market soon and I’m hearing that although things have been slow they should pick up when interest rates come down later this year. On average house prices have actually increased slightly recently - although this varies from region to region - and property sales are picking up. This is what people/Google etc are telling me. For various reasons I think my house is going to be a hard one to sell, but I need to sell it so I may just be subconsciously only hearing what I want to hear, I suppose.

I cannot question your own experience but may I ask a favour?

I did a test on RM where I looked at Romford (East London). I looked at what had been added (or reduced) in the last 14 days and toggled between include/exclude SSTC/Under Offer. The figures came out as 206/193 - meaning that only 13 of the 206 had gone under offer in the last 14 days (c. 6%). That doesn't feel like everything selling fast. What would be wrong or faulty with this analysis?

I’m not surprised. Parts of East London are really trendy at the moment.

Not Romford though …

Hahahaha. Try entering the area as East London in RM - it's even lower!

East London is massive though. It’s certain parts that are trendy & presumably @bumblebee1000 works in one of those areas if properties are selling fast