Asking prices fell 1.0% in July — five times the long-term seasonal average of 0.2%, according to Rightmove’s latest House Price Index. If you’re weighing up a sale, that headline may have given you pause. The figures underneath it should do the opposite.
The dip doesn’t mean buyers have disappeared or the market has stalled. It reflects a market where buyers have more choice than they’ve had for years — so they’re taking a little longer, comparing more carefully, and committing to the homes that offer genuine value. For sellers, that isn’t bad news. It means pricing strategy and presentation now decide outcomes more than they have at any point since the pandemic.
The July snapshot
- Average asking prices fell 1.0% during July (long-term July average: 0.2%).
- Correctly priced homes are selling in an average of 36 days.
- Homes that need a price reduction take an average of 127 days to sell.
- 74% of successful sales this year were agreed without any reduction.
One message sits behind all four numbers: getting the launch right from day one gives you the greatest chance of a strong sale. Everything else in this piece is really about how.
More choice doesn’t mean fewer buyers
The biggest misconception we hear is that more homes on the market makes it a poor time to sell. The motivated buyers are still very much here — many with mortgages agreed, their own sales in place, and a firm intention to move before the end of the year. The difference is simply that they have options, which makes them naturally selective.
Across Tunbridge Wells and the surrounding villages we’re seeing exactly this pattern. Well-presented homes priced on evidence continue to draw strong viewing levels, competitive interest and agreed sales. Homes launched above market value get a quieter start — and quiet first weeks are expensive, for reasons the next section explains.
Price correctly from the start
A newly launched home enjoys its maximum portal exposure in the first few weeks, and lands in front of the buyers who have been waiting for something suitable. That early momentum is very difficult to recreate later. It’s why the 36-day and 127-day averages sit so far apart: the correctly priced home spends its once-only launch attention on the right number; the optimistically priced one spends it proving the number wrong.
Perhaps the most telling figure is the quietest one — nearly three quarters of this year’s successful sales never needed a reduction at all. Launching at the right price isn’t underselling. It’s positioning the home so buyers recognise its value immediately, which is what creates the competing interest that protects your final figure.
First impressions carry more weight than ever
With buyers comparing more homes, presentation is often the difference between a viewing booked and a listing scrolled past. The good news: it rarely requires expensive work. The highest-return steps are simple ones.
- Declutter rooms so the space, not the storage problem, is what photographs.
- Bring gardens and outside areas up to tidy — kerb appeal is the first frame buyers see.
- Finish the small maintenance jobs a viewer would notice, before they notice them.
- Let natural light in for photography and viewings; light sells rooms.
- Invest in professional photography and marketing that shows the home at its genuine best.
Almost every buyer begins the search online, which means your photography makes the first impression long before anyone steps through the front door.
A more balanced market is a healthier one
The exceptional pace of the pandemic years was never going to last. What has replaced it is more balanced — buyers with time to consider, sellers with realistic strategies still achieving strong results.
We’d put it more positively: this is a return to a sustainable, transparent marketplace in which well-presented, realistically priced homes keep performing strongly.
If you’re thinking of moving
The market hasn’t become more difficult — it has become more discerning. Buyers are buying; they’re just comparing before they commit. Sellers who pair realistic pricing with excellent presentation continue to achieve strong results, and usually avoid ever needing a reduction.
At Kings Estates we track buyer behaviour, local trends and live sales evidence across Tunbridge Wells and the surrounding areas continuously — every pricing recommendation we make is built on current evidence, not guesswork, so our clients launch from the strongest possible position on day one.
Frequently asked
Quick answers.
Is it a bad time to sell in Tunbridge Wells?
No — but it is a more discerning one. Buyers are still active and still committing; they simply have more homes to compare, so they take longer and choose more carefully. Well-presented homes priced on evidence continue to generate strong viewing levels and competitive interest across Tunbridge Wells and the surrounding villages. The sellers who struggle are the ones who launch above the evidence and spend months correcting it.
Why does launching at the right price matter so much?
The first few weeks of marketing are when the portals show your home to its widest audience — including the buyers who have been waiting for something suitable. That momentum is very hard to recreate. Rightmove's research shows correctly priced homes selling in an average of 36 days, against 127 days for homes that launch optimistically and later reduce. Nearly three quarters of this year's successful sales were agreed without a single reduction.
Does pricing competitively mean underselling my home?
No. It means positioning the home so buyers recognise its value immediately — which is what creates competing interest, and competing interest is what protects the final figure. A string of later reductions does the opposite: buyers watch price history, and a home that has drifted down reads as a seller in retreat.
Do I need to spend heavily on the house before selling?
Usually not. Decluttering, tidy gardens, small maintenance jobs done, rooms photographed in good natural light and professional marketing account for most of the difference. Nearly every buyer starts online, so the photographs do the first viewing — presentation decides whether they book the second.
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