British vendors headed into the new year confident, according to Rightmove, raising asking prices by 0.4% in January, giving them a 4.1% lead on January 2008, and only 8.3% less confident about squeezing a buyer until their pips squeak than they were in May 2008 at the peak of the market. In a funny kind of way, though, it's a lack of confidence underlying the movement, according to the accompanying literature. Homeowners are so spooked by the economy and the looming election that they're not putting their homes on the market. Hence a scarcity of available property. Hence a sellers' market.

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