Figures released by Rightmove have revealed a drop in house prices for the first time this year, last month. According to their data, the average asking price for a UK property fell by almost £5,000 to £365,173 – a loss of around 1.3%.

This was expected though as it is on par with the average August drop over the past 10 years. August and September are traditionally a quiet month for the market due to the summer holidays.

Don’t worry! The drop in prices isn’t expected to last, with property experts predicting rising prices again from this month onwards.

Of course, dare we say it, Christmas is coming! Transactions are taking an average of 136 days, so sellers who want to celebrate this year’s festive season in their next home will be keen to find a suitable buyer fast. This means we’ll see some homes priced competitively.

Will house prices continue to fall this year?

While buyer demand has started to ease compared to the exceptionally busy market of 2021, there is still enough of an imbalance to prevent major price falls this year.

Have interest rate rises affected house prices?

Right now, the mismatch between strong levels of buyer demand and the number of homes available to buy, is still the biggest factor influencing asking prices outside of seasonal trends.