More than one in three homes currently for sale have had original prices slashed, new research has shown.

Some 37 per cent of available properties on Rightmove have seen their price lowered since when they first came to market – the highest proportion in this period for five years.

For those who have had to reduce their asking price at least once, the average size of reduction between first marketing price and current asking price is 6.3 per cent.

Across England and Wales, the average asking price on a home coming freshly to market in November is £311,043 - down 0.8 per cent or £2,392 compared with October.

Rightmove director Miles Shipside, said: “In the run-up to the festive season many sellers are trying to tempt distracted buyers to look at their property by dangling the bauble of more attractive pricing given the quieter time of year and more challenging market.

“Many sellers who have been on the market for a while are curbing their initial pricing optimism and are hoping that reducing their property price will result in buyers selecting it as this year's must-have Christmas gift.

“The effect is an impromptu autumn sale with the largest proportion of sellers on the market having reduced their initial asking prices at this time of year since 2012.”

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