The UK housing market has reached a 12-year high for available homes, while buyer enquiries and agreed sales are both down 9% year on year. This imbalance means sellers face greater competition and many properties are taking longer to sell, largely because higher mortgage rates are limiting buyers’ spending power.

Around four in ten homes fail to find a buyer, rising to almost six in ten in London; houses perform better than flats, with roughly two-thirds selling compared with half of flats. Average two-year mortgage rates have risen to 5.29%, adding about £180 to monthly payments since late February, while newly listed asking prices increased 0.7% to £367,440 in September. Scotland has the strongest market, with nine in ten homes finding buyers, whereas accurate initial pricing remains crucial nationwide.