Massive speculation took place in days prior to the EU Referendum regarding the immediate post days of the vote and how the UK housing market would respond. Many experts believed there would be a shock to the system regardless of the outcome and data would reflect that, especially in house prices. This has simply not been the case. Although the average asking price of incoming houses for sale has fallen 0.2%, there has been little change in other areas like the number of new houses advertised for sale.

The latest data suggests those looking to sell their property for what they are actually willing to sell them for will have to wait for market prices to soften a bit. Currently, there is little sign of a possible recession taking place.

As property experts were forecasting a slowdown in the number of properties being listed for sale for this time of year, the opposite has taken place. The number of new listings has increased almost 4%.

Analysts from the UK Building and Residential Services team made comments within the latest report on the present condition of the market, saying: “Perhaps more interesting is the movement in the number of properties which have reduced their asking prices. Before the EU referendum 29.3% of listings had reduced their initial asking price, this figure has now increased to 34.5%, overall a move of 520bp or 18%. This suggests to us that UK households remain keen to move and are adjusting their price expectations.”

The report also contained comments regarding the rental market in the capital city, saying: “London has the largest rental market in the UK and we believe that asking rents provide the most cutting edge data point with respect to the health of the underlying housing market. Since the EU referendum 51% of London postcodes have seen an increase in asking rents, 48% a reduction and 1% remain unchanged.”