Average house prices have reached a record high, according to property website, Rightmove.
A large rise in the number of people looking for a new home to buy and a continued lack of sellers has led to a further increase in the average property price, to just over £286,000.
Rightmove is the UK’s largest property website and its report highlights the continued housing crisis in Britain today.
According to the Rightmove report, March was its busiest month since it was launched in 2000, with 20 per cent more people viewing property than during the same period in 2014. However, the number of new properties on the site was down by 4 per cent when compared to the first quarter of last year.
House prices were up in every region in April from March of this year and only down on April of last year in Wales. Prices rose the most in Greater London and the north east of England. In Greater London, average house prices are now £594,585, an increase of almost 50 per cent, or £195,000, since the last election in 2010.
Miles Shipside, director at Rightmove, said that an under supply of homes and a record demand for housing has led to an all-time high in property prices. He attributed the price rise to large numbers of potential sellers hesitating to put their homes on the market just before a general election. There has also been a record number of landlords buying properties as long term investments, due to the current poor return on savings.
“Record housing prices are largely due to the continued shortage of new build homes. Successive governments have failed to meet house building targets since the 1980s and this has led to increased property prices and rents,” Shipside added.
