Downward Price Trend Ends as New Property Listings Hit Two Year Low

LONDON, January 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Rightmove (http://www.rightmove.co.uk/) House Price Index for January 2011 is released today and reports that average asking prices in the UK rose by 0.3% to GBP223,121.

This is the first increase in new sellers' average asking prices for three months, following substantial falls amounting to 6.2% during November and December. Activity in January gives some good indicators of potential buyer and seller activity and a timely insight into the property market patterns that may emerge in the year ahead. New stock levels this month are at a two year low, and we expect this lack of property coming to market to assist an upward trend in new sellers' average asking prices for the next three months as it coincides with the run in to the spring moving season.

Shipside adds: "This month's price rise will come as a welcome respite to prospective sellers as they had witnessed falls in five of the previous six. However, it is a two-tier market. Those areas and property types coveted by mortgage-ready buyers are likely to experience a supply famine that will help underpin their prices this spring. Wherever those deposit-rich choose not to wander, the on-going mortgage famine will ensure sellers in those areas will remain buyer-hungry and will continue to see downward price pressure".

As well as the slight rise in new sellers' asking prices, record internet search traffic provides a welcome sign of pent-up buyer demand. The first ten days of the year were Rightmove's busiest ever period for website traffic, averaging 25m pages viewed per day.

Our December forecast of fewer properties coming to market in 2011 shows further signs of becoming reality this month. Average weekly numbers of new listings are running at 9,159, compared to 10,125 measured in the same period last year, and still well down on pre-credit crunch January norms of circa 17,000.

Shipside adds: "The sustained period of record internet property traffic we have seen at the start of the year shows that the prospective mass market are searching avidly to find the right buy. But everyone now sees less money in their wallet as a result of the VAT increase and so stability in base rates for the majority of 2011 is very important if we are to avoid the de-stabilising effect of increased repossessions and encourage greater transaction volumes."

For further statistics and to download the Rightmove January2011House Price Index please visit - http://www.rightmove.co.uk/news/house-price-indexor search for local house prices (http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices.html) at http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices.html

Rightmove Press Office, press@rightmove.co.uk, +44-(0)207-087-0700