10/09/2026
The buyers haven’t disappeared. Their buying power has changed.
Buyer searches: ↑ 7%
Sales agreed: ↓ 6%
And the impact of higher mortgage rates?
Someone able to borrow £200,000 in January could now borrow around £182,000 for roughly the same monthly payment in the example highlighted by Zoopla.
Around 9% less buying power.
So perhaps this isn’t simply a demand problem.
It’s an affordability problem.
And for property investors, there’s a lesson here.
Don’t start with:
“What does the seller want?”
Start with:
“What can I afford to pay for this deal to work?”
Because a good property at the wrong price can still be a bad investment.
Are you seeing sellers become more realistic on price?
Source: Zoopla August HPI figures
PropertyBusiness