More homeowners slashing property asking price to make a sale

First-time buyers will also benefit from reduced prices. Homeward Legal's First-Time Buyers' Hub has all the information you need for your first venture into home ownership.The average asking price for a UK property is being cut by around £25,000 as homeowners desperate to sell look to make a deal. Analysis from property website Zoopla showed that 35 percent of properties on the market across the UK have slashed their asking price with average prices in London cut by more than £50,000.

Those looking to sell in Richmond and Kingston-upon-Thames in south-west London have made the biggest cuts in their offer price at an average of £84,244. According to Zoopla, half of all properties on its website from those areas and neighbouring Surrey, long home to some of the highest property prices outside of London, have had their price reduced since they were first listed on Zoopla.

Discounting on prices is a regular occurrence in the property market, but the levels of reduction on offer are good news for property hunters who can drive a hard bargain, especially in the quiet period around Christmas and New Year.

First-time buyers will also benefit from reduced prices. Homeward Legal's First-Time Buyers' Hub has all the information you need for your first venture into home ownership.

While London and surrounding areas have offered up the biggest price reductions, with 39 percent of properties on the market lowering their asking price, prices have stayed most resilient in Scotland and northern England. Only 16 percent of Edinburgh properties have dropped their price followed by 19 percent in Salford, 22 percent in Glasgow and 25 percent in Manchester.

Talking to the Guardian, Howard Archer, the chief economic adviser to the forecasting group, the EY Item Club, said 2018 was likely to be a challenging year for house prices.

He said: "We see house prices rising a modest 2-3 percent in 2018. The fundamentals for house buyers are likely to remain challenging over the coming months with consumers' purchasing power continuing to be squeezed by inflation running higher than earnings growth."