Surge in homes for sale puts pressure on house prices

Other house price surveys have shown similar price falls over the past 12 months. Prices dropped by around 20 per cent during the financial crisis, but partly recovered in early 2010, according to most of the indices that track the market. 

Hometrack's director of research, Richard Donnell, said that the property market had been less weak so far this year than he had expected. 'Low transaction volumes, low mortgage rates and forbearance by lenders limiting the number of forced sales have all played their part. While average prices have slipped back by one per cent, sales volumes have increased off the back of higher demand and greater realism over achievable prices,' he said. The average price achieved as a proportion of the asking price remained steady at nearly 93%. House prices are under pressure from slow wage growth and lenders' preference for much higher mortgage deposits than before the financial crisis. Hometrack's data is based on a monthly survey of estate agents and surveyors in England and Wales, asking for average achievable prices for different categories of property.