UK Property Auction Values Fall By 44% In May
To say that the UK property market is going through a very difficult time is something of an under statement but it seems that the once prosperous auction houses are also struggling to sell properties with sale values down a staggering 44% over the last 12 months. While May 2008 still saw over £415 million worth of property through the show rooms, this is well down on the May 2007 figure of £750 million.
This is just another example of how the UK property sector is being affected by the continued slow down in the economy and lack of funding. The short term situation does not look any better with more falls expected but auction houses may be a useful way of detecting signs of an upturn. Simply by looking at the percentage of lots for sale and the number sold, it may be possible to detect early signs of demand retuning.
London property has been the hardest hit to date with many of those inflated prices of the last few years losing much of their froth over the last quarter. Those who acquired expensive houses on income multiples of up to 8 (and higher in some cases) will be really feeling the pain and many have already slipped into the negative equity group.
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