Rightmove data points to UK property market boost for 2013

The latest Rightmove house price index shows that the UK property market is ending 2012 on a positive note with the highest annualized rise in house prices for five years and a rise in search activity and new buyer enquiries.

According to Rightmove, prices have increased by two per cent or £4,617 year-on-year, the highest annual rise since November 2007 and prices have still risen, by 0.2 per cent if the London property market is stripped out of the figures.

Another sign that the property market could gain momentum in 2013 is that new sellers have dropped asking prices in November by just 2.6 per cent, £6,407, the least severe November drop for three years.

This means in November, the average asking price for a UK property is £236,761, down from £243,168 in October.

Research from Rightmove also indicates that search activity is up 20 per cent and new buyer enquiries are up by 11 per cent on the same time last year.

The data is released just days after the Bank of England figures on mortgage approvals indicated that they increased by 9.2 per cent over the quarter.

Official data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that house prices were up by 1.7 per cent in the 12 months to September.

Rightmove said that London continues to see higher house price increases than the rest of the country at 8.8 per cent over the year, but the rest of the country is seeing stable prices, with a rise of 0.2 per cent. The average property in London now costs £483,709.

Miles Shipside, housing market analyst at Rightmove, said: "There are a number of positive trends that justify cautious optimism as the market enters its winter recess."

"The market remains patchy, and national statistics are given a gloss by a buoyant London market. There's a two-speed market, with sellers in the capital seeing near double-digit price growth in a year while the average for everywhere else remains broadly flat."

The research shows that supply of properties in the lower price bracket has fallen. New properties coming to the market for investors and first-time buyers valued at below £150,000 has fallen by five per cent on 12 months ago.

Rightmove believes that this is a contributory factor in terrace and flat property types seeing the biggest annual increases, up 4.4 and 4.3 per cent respectively.

Mr Shipside said: "This stability may indicate a sounder springboard for 2013 as the wait goes on for a sustainable recovery in transaction numbers.”

http://www.myfinances.co.uk/mortgages/2012/11/19/rightmove-data-points-to-uk-property-market-boost-for-2013