Average discount on property asking prices is £25,000
9th May 2016
- 29 per cent of properties currently on the market have had their asking price reduced
- Average discount figure has risen by over £3,500 since the start of the year
- St Helens, Merseyside, has the largest share of properties which have been reduced in asking price (43.7 per cent)
- Largest price reductions found in Barnet in London, with prices cut by 10.8 per cent on average
The average reduction in property asking prices stands at over £25,000, according to leading property website Zoopla. This figure has grown by almost £4,000 to £25,265 from £21,570 since January this year, marking a 17 per cent increase.
Almost a third (29 per cent) of properties currently listed for sale on Zoopla have seen their price reduced at least once since originally being listed. This represents a 0.43 per cent increase in the number of price reductions since the start of 2016.
Eight of the 10 areas with the highest proportion of properties with a reduced asking price are located in the north of England, with almost half of all properties listed in St Helens (43.7 per cent), Hartlepool (42.5 per cent) and Middlesbrough (40 per cent) having been marked down. Also in the top 10 are Haverfordwest in Wales, and Great Yarmouth in East Anglia.
When it comes to where asking prices have been discounted the most, the top area is Barnet – where 10.8% is the average amount knocked off asking prices – followed by Coventry (10.4 per cent) and Salford (10.4 per cent). Inside the top 20, London isn’t far behind with an average reduction percentage of 7.8 per cent – above the overall national average of 6.86 per cent. Prices in Northampton, Milton Keynes and Maidenhead have been reduced the least with asking prices marked down by 4.53, 4.58 and 4.73 per cent respectively.
London’s borough of Kensington and Chelsea tops the list of the 10 London boroughs with the highest proportion of asking price reductions - 33 per cent of properties in the area have been marked down in price. This is closely followed by Hammersmith and Fulham (32 per cent) and Kingston upon Thames (30 per cent). However, those looking for the largest possible reductions should look to Enfield, which checks in at number one on the top 10 list of London boroughs with an average discount of 8.4 per cent.
At the upper end of the of the national property market, almost a quarter (24 per cent) of properties with an asking price of over £1m have been reduced since their original listing, with the average discount standing at nearly £180k (£179,593).
Lawrence Hall, spokesperson for Zoopla comments: “The small increase in the number of properties for sale with reduced asking prices and the rise in the average discount to over £25k should be welcome news for aspiring homeowners looking to get a foot onto the property ladder. Despite increasing house prices across the country, there’s clearly still space for negotiation, and doing your research to find the best deal is definitely still worth the time.”
Top 10 areas with the highest proportion of asking price reductions
| Rank | Area | % of Homes on Market Reduced | Average Price Reduction (%) | Average Price Reduction (£) |
| 1 | St Helens | 43.7% | 6.45% | £8,921 |
| 2 | Hartlepool | 42.47% | 8.9% | £14,334 |
| 3 | Middlesbrough | 40.08% | 7.66% | £12,799 |
| 4 | Wigan | 39.8% | 6.41% | £10,641 |
| 5 | Wakefield | 39.46% | 6.75% | £14,779 |
| 6 | Great Yarmouth | 39.23% | 7.21% | £15,591 |
| 7 | Darlington | 38.92% | 6.88% | £11,730 |
| 8 | Preston | 38.15% | 6.53% | £14,252 |
| 9 | Haverfordwest | 38.1% | 10.14% | £25,208 |
| 10 | Halifax | 38.09% | 7.23% | £14,199 |
Top 10 areas with the biggest reductions in asking prices
| Rank | Area | Average Price Reduction | Average Price Reduction (£) | % of Homes on Market Reduced |
| 1 | Barnet (town) | 10.82% | £120,969 | 24.7% |
| 2 | Coventry | 10.43% | £27,320 | 24.2% |
| 3 | Salford | 10.39% | £16,634 | 11.09% |
| 4 | Haverfordwest | 10.14% | £25,208 | 38.1% |
| 5 | Blackpool | 9.59% | £15,202 | 32.35% |
| 6 | Bishop Auckland | 9.58% | £14,391 | 37.79% |
| 7 | Hull | 8.95% | £11,889 | 26.98% |
| 8 | Hartlepool | 8.9% | £14,334 | 42.47% |
| 9 | Oxford | 8.71% | £39,890 | 29.25% |
| 10 | Romford | 8.49% | £36,529 | 21.03% |
Top 10 areas with the smallest reductions in asking prices
| Rank | Area | Average Price Reduction | Average Price Reduction (£) | % of Homes on Market Reduced |
| 1 | Northampton | 4.53% | £12,340 | 24.56% |
| 2 | Milton Keynes | 4.58% | £14,478 | 21.54% |
| 3 | Maidenhead | 4.73% | £25,175 | 27.26% |
| 4 | Harrow | 4.79% | £24,866 | 21.67% |
| 5 | Wembley | 5.05% | £27,191 | 19.87% |
| 6 | Bridgend | 5.14% | £8,580 | 34.04% |
| 7 | Ipswich | 5.25% | £13,785 | 32.62% |
| 8 | Worcester | 5.39% | £13,915 | 32.2% |
| 9 | King’s Lynn | 5.63% | £16,789 | 30.93% |
| 10 | Paignton | 5.66% | £12,431 | 26% |
Top 10 areas with the lowest proportion of asking price reductions
| Rank | Area | % of Homes on Market Reduced | Average Price Reduction (%) | Average Price Reduction (£) |
| 1 | Salford | 11.09% | 10.39% | £16,634 |
| 2 | Edinburgh | 12.27% | 7.1% | £18,836 |
| 3 | South Croydon | 17.93% | 5.76% | £22,525 |
| 4 | Croydon | 18.55% | 5.83% | £22,539 |
| 5 | Wembley | 19.87% | 5.05% | £27,191 |
| 6 | Edgware | 20.35% | 7.11% | £35,137 |
| 7 | Romford | 21.03% | 8.49% | £36,529 |
| 8 | Sutton | 21.15% | 6.88% | £34,806 |
| 9 | Clacton-on-Sea | 21.39% | 7.28% | £13,057 |
| 10 | Milton Keynes | 21.54% | 4.58% | £14,478 |
Top 10 London boroughs with largest asking price reductions
| Rank | Area | Average Price Reduction (%) | Average Price Reduction (£) | % of Homes on Market Reduced |
| 1 | Enfield | 8.4% | £53,052 | 23.21% |
| 2 | Kensington and Chelsea | 7.95% | £137,421 | 33.26% |
| 3 | Barnet (borough) | 7.92% | £84,236 | 24.39% |
| 3 | Havering | 7.92% | £35,955 | 21.64% |
| 5 | Islington | 7.83% | £73,274 | 24.7% |
| 6 | Westminster | 7.77% | £130,312 | 29.51% |
| 7 | Hounslow | 7.76% | £62,746 | 27.24% |
| 8 | Hackney | 7.69% | £58,464 | 22.24% |
| 9 | City of London | 7.67% | £72,220 | 21.09% |
| 10 | Croydon | 7.63% | £38,375 | 24.17% |
Top 10 London boroughs with highest proportion of asking price reductions
| Rank | Area | % of Homes on Market Reduced | Average Price Reduction (%) | Average Price Reduction (£) |
| 1 | Kensington and Chelsea | 33.26% | 7.95% | £137,421 |
| 2 | Hammersmith and Fulham | 31.99% | 7.23% | £81,460 |
| 3 | Kingston upon Thames | 29.7% | 6.54% | £57,838 |
| 4 | Merton | 29.54% | 6.6% | £51,676 |
| 5 | Westminster | 29.51% | 7.77% | £130,312 |
| 6 | Wandsworth | 29.08% | 6.74% | £79,196 |
| 7 | Richmond upon Thames | 27.51% | 6.72% | £57,311 |
| 8 | Camden | 27.45% | 7.25% | £94,671 |
| 9 | Lambeth | 27.41% | 6.91% | £67,581 |
| 10 | Hounslow | 27.24% | 7.76% | £62,746 |
- Ends -
For further information, please contact PR Team on pr@zoopla.co.uk or +44 (0)20 3873 8770.
About Zoopla
Hello. We're Zoopla. A property website and app.
We know you're not just looking for a place to live. You're looking for a home.
Yeah, we've got over a million properties for you to browse.
Tools that let you filter them in all kinds of clever ways.
And reliable house price estimates, so you can be sure you aren't paying over the odds.
But we know you're looking for more than that.
Because that first flat won't just be a 'great investment opportunity'.
It'll be the feeling of starting out on your own.
That extra bedroom won't just mean another £20K on the re-sale price, it'll mean having your sister over to stay.
And that bungalow won't just be a way to release some equity, it will be a chance to spend more time with the grandkids.
We know that searching for a home is about more than just checking its price, location and features (important as all those things are).
What really matters is how it makes you feel.
We know what a home is really worth.
So let us help you find yours.
Zoopla is part of Zoopla Limited which was founded in 2007.
Zoopla Limited, The Cooperage, 5 Copper Row, London, SE1 2LH
Registered in England and Wales with Company No. 06074771
VAT Registration number: 191 2231 33
Data Protection number: Z9972266