3.5m homes bought in last 5 years worth less than purchase price

New research from property website Zoopla.co.uk shows that 4 out of 5 homes purchased in Britain since 2006 have a market value today below their purchase price.
Of the 4.32 million homes purchased since 2006 and where the ownership remains the same, 3.5m (80%) of these homes are ‘underwater’ (worth less today than their purchase price).
According to Zoopla.co.uk, which lists over 17 million previous sale prices and provides current value estimates for every UK property, those worst affected are the homeowners who bought at the peak of the market. 93.2% of homes bought in 2007 and 88.9% of those bought in 2008 are now ‘underwater’.
Over the last 5 years, buyers who have fared best are those who bought in 2009, having successfully timed the bottom of the market during the recent downturn.
At a regional level, the North East of England is the worst affected area, with 93% of properties purchased since 2006 yet to climb back to the values paid for them by their owners.
At the other end of the scale, less than half (46%) of homes bought over the last 5 years in London are now valued below their purchase price, underlining how much more resilient the capital has been to the property downturn versus the rest of the country.
Nicholas Leeming, Business Development Director of Zoopla.co.uk, said:
“There is an unprecedented number of homeowners ‘stuck’ with homes they bought in recent years with the expectation that prices would continue to sky-rocket. And as a result of not wanting to take a loss on their asset, many owners have been unwilling to set realistic asking prices to sell them. The London market has been unique and bounced back very strongly from the recent market lows of 2009.”