London house prices actually FELL in November

Well it’s the first time we’ve written a story like this is in quite some time – asking prices for London houses dropped by 5% in November, according to Rightmove.

The property website said the average London home is now worth £517,276, having shed £26,956 in the past month.

However, this time of year is typically more sluggish for the property market – although some analysts were expecting the government’s controversial Help to Buy scheme to counteract that slow-down.

“At this time of year it’s mainly those with a more pressing need to sell that come to market, driving average asking prices down,” explained Miles Shipside, Rightmove director. “The excitement about Help to Buy’s early launch failed to buck the seasonal trend.”

The decline in November contrasts sharply with Rightmove’s reading for the month before, which found that London house prices jumped up by 10% in October, which the property website called “unsustainable” at the time.

Over the past three months London house prices have grown by 3.2%, Rightmove said, and property prices in London are 6.9% higher than this time last year, compared with a UK average home price growth of 4%.

The government announced last week that it found that London house prices grew 9.4% over the past year.

Shipside said he expected the property market to pick up in the new year.

He added: “This side of Christmas could be the time for eager buyers to hunt out keen sellers and do a deal.”

Let us know what you think @LondonlovesBiz and @sophiehobson

 

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