text: Sellers are now wildly over-valuing their houses by around £74,000 – forcing buyers to barter them down, analysis shows. A study found that Britons selling their properties refuse to admit the housing market has cooled and mistakenly believe they are sitting on a goldmine. Buyers must now increasingly treat asking prices as a starting point for negotiations as sellers demand silly prices, it is claimed. Sellers are now wildly over-valuing their houses by around £74,000 – forcing buyers to barter them down, analysis shows . While average sale prices are about £207,000 in the UK, advertised asking prices are typically £74,000 higher at £281,000. Researchers analysed sold price data from the Office for National Statistics, Land Registry, Halifax and Nationwide and compared it to asking prices on the UK’s largest property website Rightmove. Online estate agent eMoov said many sellers still believed they were selling at the market’s peak and were routinely over-pricing their property, encouraging buyers to put in cheeky offers. A report said: ‘Previous high demand in many areas caused house prices in England and Wales to soar, with many sellers now looking to cash in as a result of a particularly buoyant market. ‘But as the market begins to cool, those looking to sell are doing so at increasingly unrealistic prices.’ Last year, house prices rose by 8 per cent, according to Halifax, peaking at 10 per cent over the summer. But forecasts suggest prices will grow at a fraction of this rate this year. The study said a recent fall in activity in the housing market had also prompted some estate agents to over-value properties in a bid to secure custom from depleted numbers of sellers. It said some agents ‘overvalue a property on purpose to win the business and get the seller on their books’, knowing the price must later be knocked down significantly before it sells. Russell Quirk, of eMoov.co.uk, said: ‘Unfortunately it’s a common place practice in the high street sector. ‘The agent is driven by a percentage fee so they will overprice a property to try their luck, win the business and increase their profit margins. A study found that Britons selling their properties refuse to admit the housing market has cooled and mistakenly believe they are sitting on a goldmine . ‘Understandably the seller opts for the agent that claims they can get the highest price, as we are all motivated, to some extent, by money. ‘Then as regular as clockwork the agent will ring them a few weeks down the line and ‘advise’ on a lower asking price in order to sell. ‘But it is, in part, down to the seller. ‘If someone has it in their head they should achieve x amount, they will list at this regardless of what advice they receive.’ A survey of 2,000 sellers in England and Wales, carried out by eMoov, found that that more than half of sellers would list their property at a price recommended by their agent. But over a third said they would list at a higher price than this, while only one in 20 said they would go lower than the recommendation. A third of sellers also said getting the highest price was the most important factor, while a quarter said their priority was securing a buyer with stable finances. A seventh of respondents said not missing out on purchasing a new home they liked was the most important issue. Andrew Montlake, of mortgage brokers Coreco Partners, said: ‘Estate agents say their biggest battle at the moment is trying to get sellers to agree to a realistic figure because they are reluctant to accept that prices have come down. ‘At the start of last year, we had the perfect storm. The economy was recovering and buyers and sellers who had done nothing for five years leapt into action. ‘Lenders wanted to lend and the market went crazy, with almost every property receiving a ridiculous number of offers. ‘But we are now in a more sensible market and the buyers are back in control. There is no longer the same demand.’ He added: ‘The difficulty is trying to get vendors to put their home on the market for a realistic price to get buyers through the door. ‘Once they have interest in their property, they may find the price is pushed up if buyers enter into a bidding war.’
target: Study shows UK sellers refuse to admit the housing market has cooled .
  Buyers increasingly treat asking price as starting point for negotiation .
  Average sales price is £207,000 but average asking price is £281,000 .