The property market has slipped into an early winter slowdown, with fresh signs that uncertainty over next week’s Budget is prompting hesitation among both buyers and sellers.
New asking prices have fallen by 1.8% this month, a larger-than-usual November drop, as households await clarity on possible tax changes at the upper end of the market.
Rightmove reported that the average new seller asking price has slipped by £6,589 to £364,833. The fall is sharper than the typical 1.1% decline seen at this time of year and marks the steepest November drop since 2012.
A decade-high number of homes on the market is also putting pressure on prices, adding to the seasonal lull that normally emerges as Christmas approaches.
With buyers proving more cautious, many sellers already listed are trimming expectations in order to attract interest. Rightmove said more than a third of homes on the market have had at least one asking price reduction, averaging 7%, the highest level since February.
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, said: “The decade-high number of homes available on the market continues to restrict price growth, with many new sellers keen to avoid standing out by over-pricing compared with their competition.
"The Budget is a big distraction, and is later in the year than usual, with many would-be buyers waiting to see how their finances will be impacted.”
The upper end of the market, where speculation about potential tax changes has been concentrated, is seeing the biggest pause.
Sales agreed on homes priced above £2 million are down 13% compared with last year as rumours of a possible mansion tax circulate. Activity among sellers has slowed, too, with new listings in this bracket down 9%.
Homes priced between £500,000 and £2 million have also cooled, with sales agreed down 8% year-on-year amid suggestions of stamp duty changes or capital gains tax adjustments.
By contrast, the market below £500,000 has been more resilient, with activity falling just 4%, although this section too has been affected by broader nerves over affordability.
Even so, sales agreed across the year to date are still 4% higher than in 2024, helped by the gradual easing of borrowing costs.
The average two-year fixed mortgage rate is now 4.41%, down from 5.06% a year ago, though the pace of reductions in 2025 has been slower than many expected.
Babcock added: “Falling mortgage rates and rising wages have boosted buyer affordability, but the market also needs further Bank Rate cuts and less uncertainty about taxes.”
Matt Smith, mortgage expert at Rightmove, said: “The Bank opted to maintain the status quo ahead of the widely anticipated Budget, but there’s still a good chance of another rate cut before the end of the year.”
Several agents reported a split in behaviour as some buyers aim to complete before the Budget while others wait for clarity. Nick Leeming, chairman of Jackson-Stops, said caution among high-value buyers was “reflecting the variety of trailed policies from the government”.
In central London, appetite remains highly segmented. Bertie Russell, managing director at Russell Simpson, said uncertainty was prompting some buyers and sellers to pause, but added that “the anticipation and the unknown have always been worse than the result”.
Many in the sector now expect that once the Budget is delivered, the market could regain some momentum heading into the new year.