The housing bubble has burst, analysts have said, after sellers started slashing money off their asking prices and accepting offers up to 10 per cent less than when the property was listed.
According to Zoopla, the average discount on the original price of a property across Britain is now more than £25,000, compared to the discount in January where the average amount that a property price dropped between initial listing and sale was £21,560.
Estate agents are making fewer sales at the top end of the market and lenders are turning to riskier financial products, like the 100 per cent mortgage announced by Barclays Bank, to make sales.
Halifax Bank said on Monday that the average house price fell a sharper than expected 0.8 per cent in April. However, industry figures may have been skewed partly because of the hike in stamp duty for buy to let investors which came into force on 1st April.
According to surveyors across the UK, the number of people looking to buy a new home also dropped to its lowest level since 2008 in April, which again may have been partly due to the hike in stamp duty for buy to let investors.
There does not appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel either as sales are expected to remain flat in the coming months because of uncertainty over the EU referendum on June 23.
"Despite all this doom and gloom the conveyancing team at Frettens continue to thrive and are always looking to take on new instructions," says Conveyancing Solicitor Clare Hallett.
Our Conveyancing Team, based in Christchurch, also cover Bournemouth, Poole and the New Forest. For a free initial chat, please call 01202 499255 and Clare or a member of the team will be happy to discuss any questions that you may have.