House prices face stagnation

ESTATE agents say the property market is facing stagnation because 'greedy' sellers are pushing asking prices to an all-time high. The property website Rightmove says that despite a shortage of buyers, blinkered vendors are refusing to accept that the property boom is over.

The average asking price in England and Wales stands at a staggering £197,539 - £1,341 higher than the previous record set last July.

Rightmove said sellers risked seeing their properties languishing on estate agents' books for many months, bringing stagnation to the market.

Its commercial director, Miles Shipside, said: 'The plain fact is that sellers are being greedy in the context of current market conditions. These record asking prices aren't reflecting the fact that we have been in a buyers' market for the last nine months.'

The spring often produces a mini-property boom but Shipside said the traditional surge has come late this year. He added: 'The feedback from most estate agents is that properties which are accurately valued for the competitive market are the ones that are selling quickly.'

The number of properties on estate agents' books is about 29% higher than this time last year, at an average of 67 per office.

Shipside said: 'It is a crucial period for the housing market. With supply having exceeded demand for the last nine months, sellers and estate agents have to become more accurate in their asking prices and more negotiable to offers in order to achieve a sale and stop stagnation. Actual selling prices are often about 10% below what we were seeing last spring for the same properties.'