Sellers accepting low offers - is this an opportunity...

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28 June 2023

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Sellers accepting low offers - is this an opportunity for landlords?

New data from Zoopla shows that 42 per cent of sellers are accepting offers over five per cent below the asking price – the highest number in five years.

Meanwhile 15 per cent are accepting offers 10 per cent lower than asking.

The portal says there are 14 per cent fewer buyers than a year earlier and 18 per cent more properties coming to the market than the five-year average.

House prices are up 1.2 per cent in a year, but annual house prices are set to turn negative in the second half of the year – with a five per cent fall by the end of 2023.

In response to the Zoopla figures business analyst Sarah Coles - head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown- says: “We could be piling properties high and selling them cheap in the second half of the year, as mortgage misery throws houses into the bargain bucket.

“A huge number of today’s buyers will have locked in a mortgage before rates started to rise through the roof. As a result, sales held up at eight per cent above the five-year average.

“However, demand is already down 14 per cent in a year, and as the impact of mortgage rate hikes feeds though into sales, we can expect this to intensify. A rise from four to six per cent cuts buying power by 20 per cent which is going to take a toll.

“It's also worth keeping a close eye on the number of properties being put up for sale.

“Supply is starting to grow faster, and 18 per cent more homes hit the market in the previous four weeks than the five-year average.

“As borrowers face the horror of remortgaging at a much higher rate, they’re weighing up their options. The government is hoping to stem a flood of forced sales by making it easier for people to make short-term mortgage changes in order to bring monthly costs down. It remains to be seen whether this is enough, or whether higher rates for longer are enough to persuade people they need to downsize.”

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