Average asking price of UK homes down by 2.1% in a month, says Rightmove

Property website reports largest pre-Christmas dip of last four years as figure falls to 359,137 in early December

The average asking price of homes being put on the UK market has fallen by 2.1% over the last month, according to Rightmove, which said it had seen the largest pre-Christmas dip of the last four years.

The UK's biggest property website said the average asking price was 359,137 in early December - about 7,862 less than a month previously. The fall in asking prices followed a 1.1% decrease in November's prices, and will be seen as further evidence that the property market is rapidly cooling.