Rightmove: North West house prices slip back
A seasonal lull as sellers wait for Christmas to pass has caused the North West housing market to retreat to a standstill, according to the estate agency website.
Asking prices for properties posted on Rightmove have fallen in the past month and erased an annual rise shown in October.
North West prices are in negative year-on-year territory but only just short of breakeven at -0.1%. The East Midlands was the worst performing region according to Rightmove at -1.6% below prices of November 2008.
The overall picture for the North West was as follows:
- Average price Nov 09: £162,813
- Average price Oct 09: £169,263
- Monthly change: -3.8%
- Average price Nov 08: £162,898
- Annual change: -0.1%
Miles Shipside, commercial director of Rightmove, said: "In all but the most buoyant markets home moving comes second to Christmas festivities. While the market has recovered from some dreadful lows, this month's price fall proves that it does not yet have the strength to buck seasonal trends.
"We therefore expect three months of asking price falls before a tentative recovery in early spring, likely followed by pre-election jitters."
The South East showed a rise of 3.8% compared to this time last year, driven by the lowest average stock levels per estate agency branch.
The overall national picture was of an annual rise of £3,461, or 1.6%. to an average asking price of £226,440.
