Homes in the UK that are initially priced too high are facing significant delays in selling, with some reports suggesting they can take more than four times longer to find a buyer compared to accurately priced properties. This extended time on the market is primarily due to sellers needing to reduce their asking price to attract interest.
According to Zoopla, homes requiring a price reduction take, on average, 2.4 times longer to sell. This is in addition to the typical four to six months it takes for a sale to complete after an offer is accepted. The risk of overpricing is substantial; every 5% a property is priced above the local average can cut the odds of selling by 5%, while a 10% overprice can reduce chances by approximately 10%.
Overpricing comes with a considerable financial penalty for homeowners. Nationally, the average cost for getting the launch price wrong is $33,597. Each subsequent price drop can cost sellers an additional $12,000 and add up to 10 weeks to the selling process if a property is reduced three or more times. Such delays also increase ongoing costs like mortgage payments and utility bills, and raise the risk of sales falling through.
Regional variations further highlight the issue. While northern regions like the North West and North East are seeing faster sales times, with homes selling in 27 days in July (23% faster than the national average of 35 days), southern areas like the South East and South West are experiencing longer sales periods. This contributes to lower house price growth in the south, with some areas seeing growth as low as 0.3%.
In 2025, over a third (36.2%) of all homes listed for sale required at least one price cut before being sold, a significant increase from 8.1% in 2023. This trend underscores the importance for sellers to carefully consider local market conditions and set realistic asking prices to avoid lengthy sales processes and financial losses.
