Rightmove’s latest house price index, covering two weeks either
side of the EU referendum at the end of June, suggests average asking prices
have dipped by 0.9 per cent.
But the portal stresses that this fall - equivalent to £2,647 on
a typical asking price - is seasonal, not Brexit-inspired. Since 2010 the month
of July has recorded average price falls of 0.4 per cent so this dip is bigger,
although not worryingly so.
“Political turbulence has a track record of unsettling
sentiment. Indeed last year saw a seasonally unusual 0.1 per cent fall in the
run up to the May election, and a June and July price surge as a result of the
post-election boost” says Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market
analyst.
In the two weeks immediately after the EU referendum, compared
to the same fortnight in 2015, enquiries to agents from buyers were down by 16
per cent. However, last year’s figures were boosted by pent-up demand
after the surprise general election result, which saw a 25 per cent uplift in
buyer enquiries in June and July compared to the same two-month period in 2014.
Buyer enquiry levels in the two weeks after the Brexit vote are now consistent
with the same period in 2014, which is a more comparable benchmark.
“Agents in areas where stock shortages were driving momentum
before the referendum say activity has recovered quickly, with buyers’ fear of
losing a scarce property a key factor. They say that very few deals have fallen
through as a direct result of post-Brexit jitters. Those areas of the country
whose housing markets were struggling or readjusting earlier in the year, such
as parts of London, will continue on what is often a fairly lengthy path of
price reductions to encourage buyers to return in numbers” says Shipside.
Encouragingly, instruction numbers are up - ahead even of this
time last year.
“The two weeks before the Brexit vote saw the number of
properties coming to market down by eight per cent, though the two weeks
afterwards have now seen the levels up by six per cent” he says.
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