Rightmove plc

09/12/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/12/2024 03:29

Surge in larger homes listed for sale as Autumn statement looms

Surge in larger homes listed for sale as Autumn statement looms

  • New real-time analysis from Rightmove shows there has been a surge in larger properties being put up for sale in the last week
  • The number of top-end homes coming to the market for sale - covering four-bedroom detached houses and all five bedroom or larger homes - is now 15% ahead of the same period last year
  • The spike has occurred over the last week - previously the trend of more homes coming to the market for sale was being driven by the smaller homes sector of two-bedrooms or fewer, and least by larger homes
  • The East of England (+21%) and the South West (+20%) is where this trend is most prominent
  • Falling mortgage rates particularly for those with the highest deposits, increasing speculation around a capital gains tax rise, and more choice encouraging other sellers to act, are all potential drivers of the shift

New real-time market data from the UK's biggest property website Rightmove reveals that over the last week there has been a surge in larger homes listed for sale.

The number of top-end homes coming to the market for sale - covering four-bedroom detached houses and all five bedroom or larger home - is now 15% ahead of the same period last year.

More sellers have been coming to market since the Bank Rate cut, but previously this trend was being driven by the smaller homes sector of two-bedrooms or fewer coming to the market for sale.

New properties coming to the market trends

Market sector New properties coming to the market 3rd - 9th September versus same period a year ago New properties coming to the market 27th August - 2nd September versus same period a year ago
Top-of-the-ladder (four-bedroom detached houses + five-bedroom plus homes) +15% +3%

There are number of potential drivers of the spike in larger homes listings. One potential factor is falling mortgage rates, which has been most pronounced for those with larger deposits, who would typically be more active in this largest homes sector.

Rightmove's weekly mortgage tracker shows that average 5-year fixed mortgage rate for someone with a 40% deposit (60% Loan-to-Value) is now 3.97%, compared with 5.27% at this time last year.

Another factor is increasing speculation around a capital gains tax rise in the Autumn Statement on 30th October. In addition to landlords, second home-owners of larger homes in particular could be hit by any increase to capital gains tax, which may be leading some to cash out now.

The trend of larger homes coming to the market for sale this week is most prominent in the East of England (+21%) and the South West (+20%), regions which contain some of Great Britain's popular coastal and countryside hotspots.

More choice of homes for sale also tends to encourage other home-owners to come to market, and for those looking to move within the largest homes sector, there is much greater availability of homes to move to compared with last year.

Tim Bannister, Rightmove's property expert, says:"Throughout this year we have typically been seeing more activity at the top-end compared with last year, as movers in this sector were hit with peak mortgage rates and lower availability of homes to choose from. Since the Bank Rate cut, the trend we were seeing is more smaller and mass-market homes coming to market for sale, but in just the last week we've seen a flurry of activity at the top-end again. Some of the lowest mortgage rates since before the mini-Budget are now available for those with a large deposit, and a mooted increase in capital gains tax is also likely to be contributing to decision making right now."

New properties coming to the market regional trends

Region Larger properties coming to the market w/c 9th September
East of England +21%
South West +20%
North West +19%
West Midlands +19%
North East +16%
Great Britain +15%
Wales +14%
London +14%
South East +13%
East Midlands +12%
Yorkshire and The Humber +4%
Scotland +3%

ENDS

About Rightmove

  • Rightmove has the UK's largest selection of properties for sale and to rent, adds more listings than anyone else, and over 80% of all time spent on property portals is on Rightmove
  • Rightmove's vision is to give everyone the belief that they can make their move by giving people the best place to turn and return to for access to tools and expertise to make it happen
  • People can search Rightmove for residential resale, new homes, rentals, commercial property and overseas properties and use tools and information including getting a Mortgage in Principle, checking local sold prices, property valuations, market trends, maps and schools
  • Customers include the following key groups: estate agents, lettings agents, new homes developers, rental operators, commercial property operators and overseas property agents
  • Using the UK's largest housing datasets, we issue a number of regular reports to track housing market indicators: our monthly House Price Index (established 2002), our quarterly Rental Trends Tracker (established 2015), and a weekly Mortgage Rates Tracker (established 2023). Historical data is available on request
  • Founded in 2000, Rightmove listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2006 and is a member of the FTSE 100 index