Home sellers in Britain are reducing asking prices on more than 3,000 properties each day on average, marking the highest monthly volume in 15 years, according to figures from Rightmove shared exclusively with BBC News. The surge reflects a combination of oversupply in the market and sellers establishing unrealistic initial valuations, with the proportion of listed homes receiving price cuts remaining elevated since peaking in 2023.
The property market has shifted decisively in favour of buyers, who face mounting financial pressure as mortgage rates have climbed to three-year highs. Rightmove's latest data showed newly listed homes' average asking price rose 0.7% to £367,440, marking the first monthly increase since May, though prices remained 0.8% below the previous year.
The average price reduction stands at nearly 7%, equivalent to approximately £21,000 cut from a typically valued property. Homes that undergo a price reduction take substantially longer to sell: an average of 119 days to find a buyer, compared with just 39 days for properties listed at a single price. The proportion of listed homes with a price reduction reached 34% in September, only marginally below the recent peak of 36% recorded in September 2023.
Why are sellers cutting prices?
Sellers often attach emotional value to their homes based on the time and money invested in them, according to Tarah Lourens, chief operating officer at Rightmove. However, buyers approach the market with fundamentally different criteria, considering only what they can afford within their budget constraints. Zoopla estimated that 51% of two- and three-bedroom homes for sale were affordable to an average-income household, up from 45% a year earlier, based on combined annual income of £53,500, borrowing at 4.5 times income and a 20% deposit.
Getting the initial price right when a property first enters the market proves crucial. Craig Webster, of Tiger Sales and Lettings in Blackpool, emphasised that
that's when you have the greatest opportunity to capture the attention of active buyers. Once a home has been listed for an extended period before a price cut, potential buyers begin questioning why it has not sold, even when nothing is wrong with the property, according to Colleen Babcock of Rightmove.
In a market with so much choice, first impressions matter, she added.
Katie Griffin, from surveyors Sawdye and Harris in Devon, warned that correcting an initial mispricing can ultimately lead sellers to accept less than even a revised asking price.
The property may already have been online for several months and buyers can start asking why it has not sold, she explained.
How has the market changed?
The housing market has experienced a significant shift over recent months. High mortgage rates have slowed home sales, with three in five homes unsold since January, and UK house price growth halved to 0.8% annually in September as mortgage rates climbed above 5.9%. While the number of homes for sale increased 5% in September compared with a year earlier, the number of sales agreed fell by 9% over the same period, according to Zoopla.
Zoopla's analysis revealed that a quarter of newly-listed homes in September had previously been listed for sale within the last year, with six in 10 returning at a lower asking price. The problem for sellers is that these re-listed properties are taking considerably longer to sell. Properties requiring a price reduction are half as likely to find a buyer within the normal three-month timeframe, according to Richard Donnell, executive director of research at Rightmove.
September traditionally sees the highest volume of price cuts, as sellers often aim to complete transactions by year-end. The market dynamics have created particular difficulties for those selling leasehold properties in England and for sellers in regions with high inventory levels.
One seller who contacted BBC News, disposing of his late father's home in south Wales, described the market conditions bluntly:
The market is dead. Lots for sale; no-one buying. No-one thinks it's going to get easier. However, Andrew Boast, chief executive of SAM Conveyancing, noted that sellers might not necessarily lose out overall if they negotiated aggressively when purchasing and have seen their property appreciate during ownership.
How does Scotland differ?
Scotland's housing market operates under a different framework that appears to deliver better outcomes for sellers. The Home Report system requires an independent valuation of a home before it is put on the market, providing sellers with a clear pricing guide. This approach has resulted in faster sales: 74% of homes in Scotland listed during April, May and June sold within three months, compared with just 30% in London.
Richard Donnell attributed the regional variation to several factors. Higher prices, stamp duty, and the fact that some people—including landlords—do not need to sell mean that listed homes in southern England are less likely to sell quickly. The contrast highlights how structural differences in the market, combined with affordability pressures, create divergent outcomes across Britain.
What does the outlook hold?
Zoopla forecast that UK house prices would rise 0.5% by the end of 2026 and that annual sales would reach about 1.1 million. The market remains under pressure from elevated mortgage rates and constrained buyer finances, though some improvement in affordability metrics suggests gradual stabilisation may be possible in coming months.
Key Facts:
- More than 3,000 properties had asking prices reduced daily in September, the highest monthly rate in 15 years
- Average price reduction was nearly 7%, equivalent to approximately £21,000 on a typically valued home
- Homes with price reductions took 119 days to sell versus 39 days for properties listed at one price
- 34% of listed homes had a price reduction in September, only slightly below the 36% peak in September 2023
- Sales agreed fell 9% year-on-year despite a 5% increase in homes available for sale
