Average asking price for UK home hits new high of almost £380k

The average asking price of a UK home has hit a new record high for the second month in a row, with sellers seeking almost £380,000 on average in May, according to a property website.

Across Britain, the asking price for homes coming on to the market has risen by £2,335 or 0.6% in May compared with April, Rightmove found. This took the average asking price to a new record of £379,517, after a previous record was set last month.

It marks the fifth consecutive year in which asking prices have reached a record level in May, a time of year when the British property market is traditionally at its busiest, as sellers feel their homes and gardens are primed to attract bids, and buyers start to look around.

However, the monthly seasonal price increase was the lowest since 2016, as price growth was limited by the number of homes for sale, which stands at its highest level in a decade.

The property market has been more subdued this spring than usual, with lower demand from new buyers, after a busy first quarter of the year as buyers in England and Northern Ireland raced to beat the deadline for changes to stamp duty.

Temporary cuts to stamp duty in England and Northern Ireland came to an end at the start of April, after the announcement by the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, in her October budget. Scotland and Wales set their own taxes on house purchases.

The property market was busier than usual in March, the report found, while new buyer demand slowed in April to 4% more than the same month in 2024.

Despite this, demand so far this year is still 3% ahead of last year, and there are signs of a bounceback in May.

Rightmove suggested that some buyers might have been waiting for the Bank of England’s most recent cut in interest rates. Policymakers at the central bank lowered rates by a quarter point to 4.25% earlier this month.

Tom Bill, the head of UK residential research at the estate agents Knight Frank, said: “The interest rate environment should continue to improve and looser mortgage lending rules should underpin demand later this year. We expect 3.5% average UK price growth in 2025.”

Lenders have been slowly reducing interest rates, and reviewing affordability criteria, allowing buyers to borrow more. The lowest available two-year fixed mortgage rate is 3.72%, according to Rightmove’s weekly mortgage tracker, down from 4.75% last year.

Colleen Babcock, a property expert at Rightmove, said: “The 10-year-high choice of homes for sale means that sellers need to be aware of the level of competition they’re facing for the attention of buyers, and the prices that are being advertised in their location.”

Despite the lull in new buyer demand in April, the number of property sales agreed last month was 5% higher than at the same time last year.

“In the current market, buyers may well have several similar homes to choose from in their area, and a home which appears overpriced compared to the competition may not get a second look,” Babcock added.