House prices in the UK dropped by 2.1% between November and December, the biggest fall for four years, according to Rightmove’s monthly index.
The average price of a house coming to the market has dropped to £7,862. The average price is now £359,137.
The online estate agent said this was a “bigger dip than usual at this time of year” and said would-be buyers were waiting to see if the market was calmer next year.
Prices will also drop by an overall average of two per cent next year, the property firm believe.
Higher mortgage rates
House prices have been hit by higher mortgage rates, after September’s mini-budget which left minimal options for homeowners.
Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s director of property science, said: “Though we would always expect prices to drop in December, as motivated sellers try to capture the attention of a buyer before Christmas with a competitive price, this monthly dip is the largest we’ve seen for four years.
“Economic headwinds including rapidly rising mortgage costs mean that some would-be buyers may have paused their plans for the foreseeable future.”
The end of 2022 will see new seller asking prices 5.6 per cent higher than a year ago, compared to growth of 6.3 per cent last year.
