Pricing will be key in selling your home in 2023
The last 3 months of 2022 forced many people to rethink their current and future living situations with rising interest rates causing havoc with peoples’ spending power. Some of the headlines in the press would have led you to believe that the housing market ground to a complete stop, but looking into Rightmove data over the last 3 months, the picture was not as bleak as many were predicting. Here are some key highlights and what this means for the market in 2023.
Some significant repricing in response to September’s mini-budget
In October and November, the number of properties which were reduced in price on Rightmove jumped considerably with a 216% increase in reduced price listings between September and October 2022.
Monthly sales agreed
The above re-setting of pricing will have played a significant part in helping to maintain sales levels in the later stages of 2022. Looking at the number of offers accepted each month for properties advertised on Rightmove, as you would expect over the winter months, the number of sales agreed dropped in December and January. Interestingly, however, the level in December and January is consistent with this time a year ago, in fact this year is slightly ahead of a year ago. We would now expect sales to bounce back again.
New Homes being listed holding up
Equally surprising compared to many predictions, the number of new sales listings added each month is also holding up and following the normal season patterns with levels consistent with a year ago. Although we don’t have the data to support it we would also assume that, on the back of the supposed market turmoil, any new listings were added to the market, sensibly priced.
Available properties on the market
With sales agreed and new listings both dipping but in line with the normal seasonal patterns, stock levels on the market are holding up well, giving buyers more choice on the market.
What’s ahead in 2023?
With some recent, relative clarity on interest rates and mortgage rates for 2023 we expect people to move forward with selling up and buying a new home this year and so a busy sales market is in store. We expect stock levels to continue to build up, giving buyers plenty of choice when searching for their new home and as we’ve learnt from the data over the winter months, pricing will be key this year. With more homes on the market for sale, serious sellers will have to price their homes sensibly to secure a buyer.