House prices: Average asking price soars to record £294,351 after Tory election win
06-16-2015
June saw an increase of £8,218 on the previous record set in April 2015 following the Conservatives General Election victory
Asking prices for houses have reached record highs across England and Wales after the Conservative general election victory.
The average property on the market in June is estimated to have costed £294,351 by Rightmove.
This marks an increase of £8,218 on the previous record set in April 2015, as the number of properties coming to market was down by 8.5 per cent on the same period a year ago.
Average asking prices increased by 3 per cent between May and June in reaction to the Conservative victory in the general election.
It represented the highest monthly rise since February 2014, following a surge in demand following David Cameron’s reelection.
Miles Shipside, Rightmove director and housing market analyst, said: "Agents report that the election surprise has given a boost to market sentiment, driven by more certainty about future economic and taxation policies.
"While would-be buyers have been able to respond quickly to these events, many potential sellers have so far failed to come to market."
The report also said that last month saw a 3.9 per cent fall in the supply of new homes.
Average asking prices also reached new record highs in June regionally, in London, the South East, the South West, the East of England, the East Midlands and the West Midlands.
Wales and the North East of England were the only areas to see asking prices fall.
Mr Shipside said: "Some buyers had been holding back in the weeks before the election, leading to some sellers suffering an unseasonal price standstill in the late spring.
"In particular, sentiment and prices got hit in the mooted Mansion Tax price brackets. Now the unexpected election outcome has caused a strong rebound, prompting an upturn in buyer demand and helping new seller asking prices to hit their highest ever levels.
"This has pushed up some of the asking prices of those properties that have been marketed, meaning that buyers are faced with paying a new average record price high for the more limited choice available. It could be said that this is the price of political certainty.
"While much of the price momentum has emanated from the south where the supply/demand imbalance is more acute, the strength of demand for the right property is resulting in a record price wave rolling further north, with the Midlands also at new highs."