The Rightmove House Price Index Report revealed a seasonal drop in new seller asking prices by 1.7% (-£6,395) this month, bringing the average to £360,197.
This aligned with the usual December decrease, as sellers’ pricing power weakens before Christmas.
Prices at the end of this year were found to be up by 1.4% compared to December 2023.
Rightmove predicted a 4% rise in new seller asking prices next year, aided by expected lower mortgage rates that could boost affordability and market activity.
Despite the festive slowdown, activity remained stronger than the same time last year, with agreed sales up by 22% and new buyer demand rising by 13%.
Boxing Day 2023 saw a record number of new sellers entering the market, offering more choices for buyers while demand surged by 273% between Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
Rightmove’s latest data also highlighted that sellers of smaller properties in high-priced areas aimed to sell before the Stamp Duty deadline to avoid higher taxes.
First-time buyer properties, especially those priced below the £300,000 mark showed the strongest price stability.
Tim Bannister, director of property science at Rightmove, said: “New sellers in December have to work particularly hard to capture the attention of Xmas-party and festivity-distracted buyers, and the 1.7% average monthly fall is a fitting gift for those who are still buying homes rather than presents.
“Despite this monthly drop, prices have risen by 1.4% compared with this time in 2023, broadly in line with our prediction of a 1% rise in prices this year.
“We are now looking ahead to the traditional Rightmove Boxing Day bounce in home-mover activity, which has increasingly become a key date in the housing market calendar.
“Each year, our real-time data can pinpoint the exact moment that the turkey is finished, family games run out of steam, mobile devices are picked up, and prospective movers flood onto Rightmove and get their 2025 move started.
“If this year is anything like recent years, those early birds who get their search started the day after the festivities are over are likely to be rewarded with plenty of fresh property choice to consider.”
“Looking at our data and the UK’s underlying housing needs, there are lots of reasons to be positive about next year.
“However, as we’ve seen several times this year, the market is sensitive to unexpected events and the direction of travel can change.
“The stamp duty changes are a cloud over the market at the moment, with some groups much more impacted than others, and therefore keen to avoid the additional charges.
“After the important first three months of the year in 2025, a lot depends on how quickly normal activity is resumed with higher stamp duty in England.
“A Bank Rate cut and some mortgage rate falls early on in the year would help to settle the market and provide a boost to sentiment and consumer confidence.”
Reaction:
Nathan Emerson, chief executive officer of Propertymark:
“Across the year we have witnessed the housing market show an incredible resilience with strong growth across the entire year overall.
“We have, however, seen many twists and turns, with the housing market duelling aspects such as high inflation, challenging interest rates, uncertainty surrounding the general election in July and the aftereffects on subjects such as Stamp Duty following the recent budget.
“Into 2025, we hope to see progress on a number of key subjects such as Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which will pave the way for the UK Government to kick start their ambitious plans of delivering 1.5 million new homes by 2029 and help level out the current mismatch between housing supply and demand.”
Steven Holden, director at Holden Copley:
“The property market has shown remarkable resilience this year, with sales activity remaining strong, which gives us optimism for a promising 2025.
“Naturally, December brings a seasonal slowdown in new listings as many shift their focus to the festivities.
“However, we expect the traditional post-Christmas surge in activity to kickstart the new year, with Boxing Day marking the beginning of a busy period.
“Getting a valuation now or early January will help put prospective sellers in a strong position to take advantage of buyers who are actively seeking correctly priced properties.
“While the market remains robust, we’re mindful of challenges ahead, including the anticipated impact of stamp duty reverting to previous levels in April.”
