Asking property prices are slashed by over 6 per cent

At least one third of properties for sale have been discounted from their original asking price in 36 of the main 50 cities/towns studied by Zoopla.co.uk.

The property search website said Barnsley in the north west of England tops the list of locations that have seen the most price reductions with 44 per cent of all properties currently listed for sale having been discounted at some point.

At the other end of the scale, only 24 per cent of current sellers in Glasgow have knocked anything off their original listing price.

The highest average price reductions have been in Rotherham, Manchester and Barnsley where average asking prices have been discounted by 7.1 per cent.

Average price reductions in the south have been smaller, with average asking prices in Chelmsford and Brighton both having been reduced by 5.1 per cent.

Nicholas Leeming, commercial director at Zoopla.co.uk, said the housing market recovery has slowed and the market direction is uncertain.

He said: "More and more sellers are cautiously reducing asking prices in a bid to attract buyers and lock in the house price gains of the past 16 months.

"But, Britain is not one uniform housing market and smaller reductions are clearly evident in some locations in the south of England where the outlook for employment and economic growth is brighter.

"In a buyers’ market, astute house hunters will be on the lookout for properties with the biggest reductions in the hope of picking up a bargain."