UK house prices rose by a modest 0.1% in July, according to Nationwide's latest index, taking the average property value to £272,664. On an annual basis, prices are up 2.4% — a figure that sounds reassuring in isolation but sits awkwardly alongside the building society's own description of the market as "soft". That word choice matters. It signals that beneath the headline stability, transaction volumes remain sluggish, buyer negotiating power has strengthened, and the days of sellers achieving asking price without concession are firmly behind us.