I'm a newby here but have been lurking for a few months now. Was recently doing the rounds of various EA's in Fulham I as may buy there sometime this year. One agent told me that they were pricing stuff at September 2007 (height of the market) prices and then bombarded me with pitiful houses all of which I visited and all of which I dismissed as being over priced and not what I was looking for. Another national chain took me to see 2 houses which were s***holes and were already under very low offer it transpired but to 'developers' ..and they were hoping I would come in with a higher offer. No chance! All the EA offices seemed dead as a dodo with negotiatiors looking pretty bored. Any more views?

I've been following 1 and 2 bed flats in Fulham, Putney, Barnes and Richmond.

NOTHING is selling - new stock comes on daily at existing asking prices then just sits there - sub-standard flats at aspirational prices.

When I mentioned to an agent in Barnes the other day that I was STR and saving 40% on the cost of an IO mortgage for the place i was living in, instead of looking down her nose at me, she agreed and went on to tell me what great value for money she was getting for the flat that she was renting in Barnes.....

Barnes has seen a lot of price reductions (upto £40k on a 2 bed flat) but everything is still hideously overpriced and the agents know it. 6-8 months ago you'd be grateful to get to sealed bids and I was twice outbid by kamikaze FTB's who subsequently pulled out. I knew then it was time to take a step back and look to rent. Many of the flats I was viewing last summer are still on the market with not a sniff of interest - such a dramatic change in sentiment.

Fulham - stagnant denial - people need to get real - back in the summer buyers were launching themselves into anything they could get their hands on.
Putney - the same - the message hasn't got through to sellers yet - but it will given time

These are pretty affluent areas so they will need more time to turn but it has definitely started - buying anything in these areas at current asking prices is akin to financiual slavery then suicide - I'm renting a great flat for comparatively little money and have a nice warchest STR fund - So I'm putting my feet up and relaxing whilst the ineviteble carnage ensues (and it's pretty obvious that it will)

Hope that helps

I'm in a similar situation, having just sold my South London flat for asking price and decided to rent and keep and eye on the market. Estate agents tell me things are still slow and prices have already fallen 5-10%. However, it's spring and there has been some degree of recovery that is keeping sales ticking over, but only properties priced fairly low are selling. Whether this recovery develops into a healthier spring/summer bounce remains to be seen... If it does, London prices could well leap unexpectedly and catch people like me and you out. I will be keeping a very close eye on the market to see what happens.

Yes I will def be keeping a close eye on developments for the same reasons.

however,
In my experience last summer whent he market was still very hot, I was outbid several times by people who were clearly having to borrow huge sums of money (I know this cos the agents hinted and many of those offers then fell through).

I feel that a significant part of the lower end SW london market (i.e. 1-2 bed flats) is/was fuelled by big borrowing - it seems pretty obvious to me that credit tightening is having an effect now.

The only way I can really see a recovery or "healthy bounce" is if mortgage lendig loosens significantly towards how it was last summer.......
what do you think the chances of that happening are?

Thanks for that. I have just received details of a good house which seems to be 'reasonably' priced
for once but checking it out there is I see one of the more notorious council blocks at the end of the road. Could this be why?! Please keep me posted on any activity in your areas too as I currently live over the Manche...