Gap between asking and selling prices is widening

As economic fundamentals continue to worsen, the gap between selling and asking prices is widening. In the North vendors are accepting the lowest offers - averaging 12.5 per cent below the marketed price. Vendors in the North West, East Midlands, West Midlands and Wales are accepting offers averaging approximately 10 per cent below but in London the figure stands at 8.5 per cent. London has remained firmer than most as its diverse economy and large job market offers sellers more room for optimism. Interestingly, Scotland has yet to be affected (where the gap is only 2.4 per cent) but price falls in this region have lagged significantly behind the rest of the UK and it is likely that the gap will widen in the coming months.



In the North West, the majority of vendors accepted lower asking prices with 82 per cent of Chartered Surveyors reporting that the gap had widened while in the West Midlands 75 per cent reported a widening gap. More surprisingly the gap did not appear to widen in London in August with 67 per cent of Chartered Surveyors reporting no change.