The number of new properties being put on the UK housing market has fallen significantly according to the latest results from a study on property in the UK.
According to some experts, the number of properties failing to come onto the market highlights the fact that there is indeed a housing shortage across England and in other parts of the UK. Property listings in Scotland, Glasgow and Edinburgh in particular, had the biggest decrease of properties going on the market with a 30% drop. However, across England there was on average a 13% drop in the number of new properties.
The study from HouseSimple took into account 100 towns and cities across the UK as well as 32 London boroughs. Only one in every six had seen a rise in the number of new properties, with areas that had new properties listed in June falling drastically.
Decline in New Properties
Many experts stated that the General Election and the insecurity it created was the main reason for the fall in previous months. However, the year’s figures indicate there is a much wider problem. Some experts have stated that the latest figures indicate that there is a housing shortage in the UK and that new properties must be built.
Alex Gosling, chief executive of HouseSimple and author of the report, said: "Any hope that sellers were finally returning to the market seems to have been a vain one for the time being. A boost to new stock levels in June suggested that we were finally starting to see some movement from sellers, but that momentum seems to have been short-lived.
"The general election, which the market hoped would provide a catalyst for sellers, is long gone and property stock numbers remain well below normal levels.
"Why are homeowners not moving is the $64,000 question. Is it because they can't afford to as property prices have risen out of reach of them?
"Or maybe they're not confident about market conditions, despite the strength of the economy and the highly competitive mortgage rates on offer at the moment?”
He added: "Somehow, sellers need to be encouraged back to the market because there are buyers galore waiting when they do. It's a very attractive market right now for motivated sellers.
"The next few months are going to be important as the property market looks to gather momentum heading into the last quarter of the year. We fully expected activity to drop off in the summer months, but come the Autumn the market needs to replenished with stock to realign the supply versus demand balance."
The Southwest of the country was the main area that saw a substantial decrease in the number, however the shortage of new housing has led many to believe that it is the main driving force between property prices in England and across the UK.
Rising House Properties
According to the latest survey from Nationwide, the average price of property rose to £195,621 on which represents a 3.5 per cent increase on last year and a 0.4 per cent increase on the previous month. The building society admitted that the demand for property was still exceptionally high. However, they were unsure if the-the support was there to prop up demand.
Nationwide's chief economist Robert Gardner said: "The number of new homes under construction has started to pick up, albeit from historically low levels, and further increases are required if a sustainable recovery in the housing market is to be maintained over the longer term."
The economist also added that the house price growth might be "stabilising close to the pace of earnings growth" which had historically been around 4% a year.
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