RIGHTMOVE REPORTS OCTOBER RISE IN BRITISH ASKING PRICES

Rightmove said the average asking price of a newly listed home in Britain rose by 1.0% in October from September. The increase amounted to £3,575 and took the average to £371,015, according to the property website. Rightmove put the national average 0.1% below its level a year earlier. In London, it recorded a 2.5% monthly rise in the average asking price, to £673,942.

London’s average asking price remained 1.7% below its level a year earlier, Rightmove said. The company said new sellers in the capital had raised their prices after a weaker summer. It added that London typically sees stronger seasonal price growth in autumn, when more buyers are active. Colleen Babcock, a property expert at Rightmove, said: “The rapid rise in mortgage rates is really beginning to hit buyers’ budgets.”

Rightmove said the number of new potential buyers contacting estate agents about properties was 9% lower than a year earlier. It reported 3% more new listings over the same period. The company said the total number of homes available for sale was at its highest level for this time of year since 2014. Babcock said higher mortgage costs were affecting seller pricing in cheaper parts of Great Britain, where prices had been more resilient earlier in the year. She said agents were advising sellers to set competitive prices when first marketing their homes to attract buyers.