The latest figures appear to bring good news for homeowners.
Average UK house prices increased by 2.7% in the year to May 2026, taking the value of a typical property to around £271,000.
But rising prices don’t necessarily mean every home is selling — or selling at its asking price.
A recent Zoopla survey found that 44% of people who had tried to sell their home during the previous three years failed to find a buyer. Meanwhile, properties that need an asking-price reduction are taking considerably longer to sell.
So, what’s going on? If house prices are rising, why are so many homeowners struggling to move?
Rising house prices don’t tell the whole story
The headline figures reflect completed sales across the whole of the UK. They don’t mean every property—or every local market—is increasing at the same rate.
According to the latest UK House Price Index:
- The average UK property value reached £271,000 in May 2026.
- Prices were 2.7% higher than a year earlier.
- Annual growth ranged from 5.9% in the North East to a fall of 3.7% in London.
- Price growth slowed from a revised 3.9% in April to 2.7% in May.
- On a seasonally adjusted basis, prices were unchanged month to month.
This means the market isn’t moving in one clear direction. Some areas and property types are performing well, while others face weaker demand, greater competition and more price-sensitive buyers.
Underlying activity also tells a mixed story. HMRC transaction data shows around 98,000 residential sales completed in May 2026, up 16.6% year-on-year, yet the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ May 2026 residential market survey described sales activity indicators as still clearly negative, albeit showing early signs of stabilising. Mortgage approvals, an indicator of future sales, also slipped to 56,200 in May—below the average of the previous six months.
Almost half of attempted sellers failed to find a buyer
Zoopla surveyed more than 2,000 UK adults who had tried to sell a property during the previous three years. It found that 44% had failed to complete a sale.
Price emerged as one of the biggest barriers. Of the unsuccessful sellers, 16.2% acknowledged that their home had been overpriced from the outset—and a further, larger group only realised in hindsight that their asking price had been unrealistic, taking the total who look back and regret their pricing to over a third.
That doesn’t mean every unsold property is overpriced. A sale can also be affected by poor presentation, limited marketing, legal complications, an unsuitable agent or a breakdown further along the chain.
However, in a market where buyers have more choice, an unrealistic asking price can prevent a property from generating serious interest in the first place. Zoopla’s analysis found a direct relationship between the two: a home priced 5% above the local market average for its type and size sees its chances of selling fall by roughly 5%, while a 10% premium cuts the odds by around 10%.
The regional picture varies sharply too. Zoopla’s data shows sales success rates ranging from 77% in Northern Ireland and around 68% across much of the North of England, down to just 38% in London—the weakest of any UK region—against a UK average of 56%.
Is your asking price a realistic valuation—or an optimistic one?
It can feel reassuring when an estate agent gives you a higher valuation than you expected, particularly if several agents are competing for your instruction.
But an asking price isn’t the same as market value.
An asking price is the amount at which a property is advertised. Its market value is what a genuine buyer is prepared—and financially able—to pay. If the buyer needs a mortgage, their lender’s valuation must usually support the agreed price too.
Some estate agents may recommend an ambitious price because they genuinely believe the market will support it. Others may be testing demand or responding to a seller who wants to aim higher. There are also concerns within the industry about agents “buying an instruction” by providing an optimistic valuation to secure the listing.
It wouldn’t be fair to suggest that every high valuation is deliberately inflated. But sellers should be cautious when one agent’s figure is significantly higher than the others and isn’t supported by recent, comparable completed sales.
A flattering valuation may win your business. It can’t make buyers—or mortgage lenders—agree that the property is worth that amount.
Why overpricing can make a home harder to sell
Launching at a higher price can seem like a sensible way to leave room for negotiation. In practice, starting too high can work against you.
You may miss the most important marketing period
A property usually attracts the greatest attention when it first appears online. If the asking price puts buyers off during those early weeks, reducing it later may not recreate the same level of interest.
Buyers compare your home with everything else available
Buyers don’t assess a property in isolation. They compare its size, location, condition and price with competing homes.
If similarly priced properties offer more space, a better location or a higher standard of presentation, yours may struggle to generate viewings.
Repeated reductions can create concern
A property that remains online for months or undergoes several reductions can begin to look “stale”. Buyers may wonder why it hasn’t sold or assume there’s an underlying problem.
This can encourage lower offers—even after the price has been brought back to a realistic level. Zoopla’s data bears this out: among sellers who did eventually sell, 53% had to reduce their asking price first, cutting it by an average of 7%. Across the market as a whole, the average home sold in Q1 2026 went for around 3.5% below its original asking price—roughly £18,000 off the advertised figure.
A lender could value it below the agreed price
Finding a buyer at the asking price doesn’t always solve the problem. If their mortgage lender decides the property is worth less, the buyer may need to renegotiate, increase their deposit or withdraw completely.
Already dealing with a stale listing or a string of reductions? If waiting for the right buyer isn’t an option, you don’t have to keep testing the market. Get a free, no-obligation cash offer from Any House Wanted — most sellers hear back within 24 hours.
Correctly priced homes are selling much faster
The difference between an accurately priced home and one that needs reducing can be significant.
Rightmove’s July 2026 House Price Index reports that homes selling without an asking-price reduction take an average of 36 days to find a buyer. Properties requiring a reduction take around 127 days—more than three times as long. Its data also showed that 74% of homes completing in 2026 had sold without first reducing their asking price.
There are also more homes competing for buyers. Zoopla reported that the average estate agent began 2026 with 32 properties for sale—the highest level of supply for eight years, up from 30 in early 2025 and 28 in early 2024.
Financing conditions add further pressure on pricing discipline. Rightmove’s July index puts the average two-year fixed mortgage rate at 4.92%—up from 4.25% in February 2026, following the effect of the conflict involving Iran on borrowing costs, though easing slightly from 5.08% the previous month. With borrowing more expensive than at the start of the year, buyers have even less room to stretch to an optimistic asking price.
When buyers have more choice, realistic pricing becomes even more important.
How can you tell whether your home has been overvalued?
Before accepting the highest valuation, ask each estate agent to explain how they reached it.
Look for:
- Recent completed sales rather than advertised asking prices.
- Comparable properties in the same area.
- Similar size, condition, tenure and property type.
- Evidence from the last three to six months where available.
- Differences between the initial asking price and eventual selling price.
- Current competition from comparable homes already on the market.
Be cautious if an agent provides a much higher figure without strong evidence or recommends reducing the price shortly after securing your instruction.
Online estimates can offer a useful starting point, but they can’t fully account for a property’s condition, exact position, improvements or unusual features. A proper valuation should consider both the data and the individual home.
What should you do if your house isn’t selling?
First, ask for honest feedback. Are buyers viewing but not making offers, or are you receiving very few enquiries at all?
If you’re getting viewings but no offers, presentation, condition or buyer confidence may be the issue. If you aren’t attracting viewings, the price—or how the property is being marketed—is more likely to be the problem.
Your options may include:
- Reassessing the asking price using recent sold-property evidence.
- Improving the photographs, description or presentation.
- Addressing an obvious repair or legal issue.
- Reviewing your estate agent’s marketing and communication.
- Changing agents if the current approach isn’t working.
- Considering a direct cash sale if speed and certainty matter more than achieving the highest possible price.
Reducing the price isn’t always the wrong decision. The important thing is to act based on evidence rather than continuing with a figure the market hasn’t supported.
Do you need the highest price—or greater certainty?
For many homeowners, selling through an estate agent remains the right option—particularly if achieving the highest possible price is the priority and there’s flexibility around the timescale.
But what if your plans depend on the sale going ahead?
You may be relocating, managing an inherited property, facing financial pressure, going through a separation or trying to secure your next home. In those circumstances, months of uncertainty, reductions and broken chains can carry a cost of their own.
At Any House Wanted, we buy your property directly, with no estate agent fees and no onward property chain. Tell us about your property and we’ll come back with a genuine cash offer within 24 hours—so you can decide whether the speed and certainty of a direct sale is right for you.
“I contacted Any House Wanted, who made me an instant offer. They informed me at the outset that the offer will be less than market value—but I had no fees to pay and there wasn’t much price difference in the end, once you deduct estate agents and solicitors fees. They made the whole process easy.” — Simmy, West Ealing, London
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There’s no pressure and no obligation—just a clear option when waiting indefinitely doesn’t work for your circumstances.
Common questions about selling to Any House Wanted – a direct cash buyer
Will I get a fair price?
A cash offer is typically below full market value, because you’re paying for speed and certainty rather than waiting for the highest bidder.
At Any House Wanted, we’re upfront about that trade-off from the outset, and we explain how the figure has been reached so you can weigh it against local comparable sales—and against what you’d actually keep in your after estate agent and solicitor fees on a traditional sale.
We don’t charge any fees, and we’ll cover your legal costs, helping you keep more of your money in your pocket.
Are there any fees?
We don’t charge any fees, and we’ll even cover 100% of your legal fees. Furthermore, because we understand the financial strain a house sale can put on sellers, we offer 10% of the agreed sale price upfront, unlike a traditional sale.
Is Any House Wanted a legitimate, regulated business?
Any House Wanted is a member of The Property Ombudsman and the National Association of Property Buyers, and purchases are backed by independent RICS-qualified surveyors.
We don’t register legal charges against your property or use restrictive agreements that could leave you facing exit fees if you later sell elsewhere.
Full details are set out in our FAQs, or you can speak to our team directly on 0800 389 7305.
How fast is "fast"?
Once you accept, you can set your own completion date—in as little as 7 days, or on a timeline that works for you, compared with the 6–9 months a traditional sale typically takes.
Is this legally binding once I accept?
There’s no obligation—you’re free to walk away, and offers are typically valid for 28 days.
Do I have to accept the offer?
Not at all. We’re not pushy sales people. Our aim is to simply offer a quicker alternative to selling your house with traditional estate agents. All our cash offers are free and come with no obligation.
