ARCHER, Fla. – Cornelius Nathaniel Davis Jr., 29, was arrested yesterday and charged with 33 counts involving the possession of child sexual abuse material, including videos depicting six local children.
An Alachua County Sheriff’s Office detective said a CyberTip was assigned to him in August 2026 after two files containing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) were reported on a Dropbox account. The IP addresses connected to the CyberTip reportedly led to the residence where Davis lives with a family member.
A subpoena for the Google account linked to the Dropbox account reportedly identified Cornelius Davis as the name associated with it.
A subpoena issued to Dropbox reportedly returned 8,104 files. According to the detective, most depicted juvenile males or males whose ages could not be readily determined.
The files were arranged in folders labeled with the names of the juvenile males shown in the images. Based on metadata in the photos, videos were often uploaded the day after they were created. Investigators identified everyone depicted in the folders. All but two of the individuals were local to Alachua County, with most from Archer or Newberry. One was from New York, while another was from Arkansas; that individual was later arrested for allegedly producing videos showing him sexually abusing children while he was still a juvenile.
The arrest report detailed eight specific folders:
The detective reported that 418 CSAM files involved subjects who were identified and confirmed to be children. All but two of those individuals were living in or had lived in Alachua County when the images were produced.
The arrest report also described additional investigative steps that authorities said linked the Dropbox account to Davis.
On October 21, deputies executed a residential search warrant at Davis’s home and detained him during a traffic stop.
After being read his Miranda rights, Davis reportedly acknowledged having a Dropbox account and confirmed that a related email address belonged to him. He said the account contained “random videos and media on other social media sites” that he had saved to Dropbox. When the detective said the investigation involved CSAM, Davis reportedly repeated that he simply obtained “random things online” and saved them.
When told that the folders contained images of several local children, Davis reportedly acknowledged knowing them. Asked how he obtained photos and videos of nude children engaged in sexual acts, he said they came from girls who had previously dated the boys. According to the report, Davis said he communicated with the girls and that they sent him the files “on their own.” He reportedly said that when he told a girl he knew the boy shown in the nude media, she would send additional photos and videos of that boy. Davis said he then created a Dropbox folder using the boy’s name and saved the files there.
When asked why he saved the files, Davis reportedly said that, in the case of one specific folder, he wanted to be able to explain to the boy that sending that type of content online was dangerous.
When the detective asked whether any of the boys knew that Davis had files of them nude or engaged in sexual acts, Davis said they did not know.
When the detective asked what age he considered to be a “child,” Davis reportedly said that an individual over the age of 12 is no longer a child. The detective noted that this corresponded to the ages of the boys in the files, which range from 12 to 17.
When the detective asked Davis what should be done to people who possess child pornography, Davis reportedly said they should be talked to and offered help. When asked if he needed help, he said he felt okay and knew right from wrong. When the detective asked if he thought it was right or wrong to save files of nude children to his Dropbox, he reportedly said it was wrong.
Davis has been charged with 30 counts of possession of child pornography, two counts of possessing and distributing CSAM (for the two files in the CyberTip), and one count of unlawful use of a two-way communications device. Judge Adam Lee set bail at $3.5 million.
Five Israelis Shot and Wounded Before IDF Troops Kill Gunmen
Five Israelis were wounded in a shooting attack on Friday before Israeli troops killed the two Palestinian assailants in a lengthy exchange of fire. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded by ordering a lockdown across the occupied West Bank, just days before Israel’s election.
With the race for another term set to go down to the wire on Tuesday, Netanyahu said the military had stopped what might have become a major attack. He claimed the gunmen were carrying a substantial stockpile of ammunition in their vehicle.
An AFP reporter at the scene saw two Palestinian men—one armed with a handgun and the other with an automatic rifle—trading fire with Israeli forces near the Farsh al-Hawa checkpoint, close to the Palestinian city of Hebron.
The attackers were eventually shot dead by Israeli troops. The AFP journalist later saw their bodies lying beside a petrol station while soldiers secured the surrounding area.
The Israeli military said troops had been deployed to the Judea Junction area after the shooting, which took place early in the morning, and had “eliminated two terrorists”.
Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency medical service, reported that five people were wounded, including two who were in critical condition.
All five casualties were Israelis in their 20s, the service said. One man suffered gunshot wounds and was described as being in “very serious condition”.
As election day approached, Netanyahu ordered the cancellation of all political meetings for his Likud party on Friday in response to the attack.
“I salute the courage of our soldiers who acted with determination and prevented what could have been a major attack,” Netanyahu said in a statement.
“I have instructed the IDF (army) and security forces to impose an immediate cordon on the city of Hebron and to prepare for a full lockdown of all of Judea and Samaria starting today,” he added, using Israel’s biblical designation for the occupied West Bank.
Netanyahu said security forces were intensifying efforts “to thwart terrorist activities” and carrying out “large-scale waves of arrests”.
The military said it had begun “offensive counter-terrorism operations in the Hebron area”, including raids on the homes of people linked to the suspected attackers and others.
Itamar Ben Gvir, Israel’s far-right national security minister and a rising figure in the polls, called for the dismantling of the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority following the attack.
“The Palestinian Authority must be dismantled and demilitarised, and its terror infrastructure wiped out completely,” Ben Gvir said.
There was no evidence that the Palestinian Authority, which governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, had any role in Friday’s shooting.
Hamas, the Gaza-based group responsible for the October 7, 2023 attack—the deadliest in Israel’s history—praised the shooting as an “exceptional heroic operation” near Hebron. The group mourned the two dead gunmen but did not claim responsibility.
Hamas, a rival of the Palestinian Authority’s ruling Fatah faction, described the attack as a “natural and legitimate response to the ongoing crimes and brutal attacks against our people”.
Netanyahu also vowed to “pursue Hamas terrorists” wherever they were, warning: “You have no place to hide.”
Gadi Eisenkot, a former army chief and Netanyahu’s leading election rival, praised the troops’ response to the attack.
“Like all Israelis, I pray for the complete and quick recovery of the injured,” Eisenkot said.
The incident comes as tensions soar in the West Bank, including over attacks by extremist Israeli settlers against Palestinian olive harvesters, and days ahead of Israeli elections.
According to an AFP tally based on data from the Palestinian health ministry, Israeli forces or settlers have killed 1,113 Palestinians in the territory since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
Israeli figures show at least 49 Israelis, including civilians and security personnel, have been killed in Palestinian attacks or during Israeli military operations during the same period.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
Tom Skerritt, ‘Top Gun’ and ‘Picket Fences’ Actor, Dies at 93
Tom Skerritt, the Emmy-winning actor known for portraying steady, sharp-witted authority figures—from the flight instructor in “Top Gun” to the tough but principled sheriff on television’s “Picket Fences” and the doomed captain in “Alien”—has died at 93.
Skerritt died Wednesday of natural causes, his family said in a statement. “While the world knew Tom through his remarkable acting career, we knew him for his humor, curiosity, wisdom, generosity and the love he brought into our lives. He cared deeply about imagination, creativity, storytelling, service, veterans, the natural world and helping others find and share their own voices,” the statement said.
He received two Emmy nominations for “Picket Fences” and won outstanding lead actor in a drama series in 1993. Skerritt’s other notable film credits included “A River Runs Through It,” “The Turning Point,” in which he played Shirley MacLaine’s patient husband, and “Steel Magnolias,” where he portrayed Sally Field’s husband. In “Contact,” he played a calculating opportunist who opposed Jodie Foster’s effort to communicate with extraterrestrial life.
“A writer once described me as a character actor locked in a leading man’s body, and I’ve always loved that. It’s a nice compliment. I’ve been able to walk the line between television and features,” Skerritt told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in 1997.
Skerritt also worked extensively onstage. He narrated “Our Town” at Seattle’s Intiman Theatre in 2004 before making his Broadway debut in 2013 in an adaptation of John Grisham’s “A Time to Kill.” The Associated Press praised his performance, writing that he “nicely pulls off a charming disgraced and drunken lawyer.”
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He is survived by his wife, Julie; his children, Andy, Erin, Matt, Collin and Emiko; his grandchildren, Sara, Maddison, Sunny, Louisa and Georgia; and his great-grandchildren, Marigold and Ravi.
“Tom believed deeply in the power of storytelling. He helped found TheFilmSchool in Seattle to support the next generation of filmmakers and storytellers,” his family said. That commitment later led to the Red Badge Project, which Skerritt co-founded to help veterans address PTSD, anxiety and depression by writing about and sharing their experiences.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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New Hope for Thousands of Men With High-Risk Prostate Cancer
Thousands of men with high-risk prostate cancer could benefit from longer lives after researchers identified a genetic test that may help doctors determine who needs the most intensive treatment.
Prostate cancer is now the most common cancer among men, with about 64,000 new cases diagnosed each year in the UK alone.
However, doctors face a difficult challenge: identifying the patients most likely to benefit from aggressive treatment while avoiding potentially debilitating side-effects in men who may gain little from it.
Research has found that adding the hormone therapy abiraterone to standard treatment can halve the risk of death from prostate cancer in some men with the disease.
Abiraterone works by blocking testosterone production. The drug was introduced on the NHS in England earlier this year after already being adopted in Wales and Scotland.
But doctors currently lack a reliable way to identify which patients are most likely to benefit. As a result, some men may face side-effects such as fatigue, liver damage and urinary tract infections without receiving significant additional benefit.
Experts at University College London (UCL) now say a test that examines tumour tissue taken during an earlier biopsy or operation could help doctors pinpoint the patients most likely to respond to the treatment.
“Abiraterone saves lives, but we may currently be over-treating some patients with this therapy,” Dr Sarah Howlett, the study’s lead author, told the Daily Mail.
“With this test, we can identify which patients need the treatment most and avoid it for those who do not, giving doctors a clearer idea of which patients face the highest risk of their cancer returning.”
Findings from the STAMPEDE trial suggest that the test, known as Decipher, can identify the men most likely to respond to hormone therapy.
The research, presented at the European Society for Medical Oncology Congress in Madrid, analysed data from more than 30,000 men.
Decipher examines the activity of 22 genes in tumour tissue to estimate how aggressive a patient’s prostate cancer is.
Because the analysis uses tissue already collected during a biopsy or prostate operation, patients do not need to undergo an additional procedure.
The test produces a score ranging from 0 to 1. A higher score indicates a greater risk that the cancer will spread or return following treatment.
By contrast, men with lower scores may be less likely to need more intensive treatment.
The researchers found that higher Decipher scores consistently predicted poorer outcomes.
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For every 0.1-point increase in the Decipher score, the risk of cancer spreading to distant organs was 49 per cent higher, while the risk of dying from prostate cancer rose by 38 per cent.
The researchers concluded that the test could help doctors direct intensive treatment towards the men who need it most, while sparing others unnecessary side-effects.
“For men with very high-risk prostate cancer, preventing the disease from spreading is critical. Understanding who is most likely to benefit from additional treatment can make a meaningful difference,” Dr Howlett said.
‘Our findings suggest that a genomic test could help personalise treatment: men with high-risk disease but a low Decipher score have low rates of cancer spread and could potentially be spared more intensive treatment, while men with a high score could be prioritised for it.’
However, she cautioned that larger studies are still needed before the test can be routinely used to inform treatment decisions.
Elai Davicioni, medical director at Veracyte, which makes the Decipher test, added: ‘We believe this growing evidence gives physicians a stronger reason to use Decipher before making decisions that can affect both cancer outcomes and patients’ quality of life.’
Judge Bars Personal Suits Against Stew Leonard’s CEO, Staff in Baxendale Death
The chief executive and employees of Stew Leonard’s cannot be sued individually over the death of a New York City professional ballet dancer who suffered a fatal allergic reaction after eating a holiday cookie containing undisclosed peanuts.
Waterbury Superior Court Judge Kimberly Massicotte ruled Oct. 15 that Orla Baxendale’s family and estate cannot hold Stew Leonard Jr. and other grocery employees personally liable in wrongful-death claims brought under the Connecticut Product Liability Act, according to court records obtained by Allergic Living.
The case will continue against Stew Leonard’s Holdings LLC, Stew Leonard’s Danbury LLC and Cookies United, the Long Island wholesaler that made the cookie.
Baxendale, 25, died of anaphylactic shock after eating a vanilla Florentine cookie from a Stew Leonard’s-branded box at a Connecticut social gathering on Jan. 11, 2024.
An investigation into her death determined that the product’s packaging failed to disclose peanuts, an ingredient to which Baxendale was severely allergic.
An EpiPen was administered in an effort to save her, “but due to the severity of her allergy, it was not effective,” an attorney for her estate previously said.
Baxendale was born in Manchester, England, and moved to New York in 2018 after receiving a scholarship to study at The Ailey School.
She later worked with several choreographers and performed in professional productions, including events connected to New York Fashion Week and Lincoln Center.
After her death, her family and estate filed a wide-ranging wrongful-death lawsuit alleging that the defendants negligently failed to ensure the cookie package carried an accurate ingredient label.
Stew Leonard’s has said Cookies United replaced soy nuts with peanuts in the recipe without notifying the grocery chain’s chief safety officer.
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Cookies United disputes that account. The wholesaler has said it notified Stew Leonard’s in July 2023 by emailing several employees that peanuts had been added, according to Allergic Living. Those employees were all named in the original lawsuit.
Baxendale’s estate contends that the employees failed to respond to those notices, resulting in peanuts being omitted from the product label.
Massicotte had dismissed claims against individual Stew Leonard’s executives and employees on Sept. 16, 2025. Baxendale’s attorneys later amended the complaint under the Connecticut Product Liability Act, again naming Stew Leonard’s, Cookies United and individual defendants, including Stew Leonard Jr., court records show.
Although the ruling protects the individual executives and employees from personal liability, Howard Hershenhorn, the attorney representing Baxendale’s estate, said it would not prevent the family from pursuing Stew Leonard’s over what he described as “reckless” conduct.
“Stew Leonard’s did not have any systems in place to make certain that ingredients that were contained within the product were absolutely listed on the labels,” Hershenhorn told Newsday.
“They had no fail-safe systems in place at the time.”
Hershenhorn also accused the grocery chain of doing “nothing to progress the case forward except for obfuscate and attempt every potential procedural maneuver.”
“We’re having none of it and we’re right back in their face at every point to make sure this never happens again,” Hershenhorn told Allergic Living.
Hershenhorn said other Stew Leonard’s customers have contacted his firm since Baxendale’s death drew national attention, reporting labeling issues they allegedly encountered at the grocery chain.
Under a settlement with Connecticut, Stew Leonard’s paid $50,000 to the state Department of Consumer Protection and donated $200,000 to a nonprofit focused on food allergies and anaphylaxis, Newsday reported.
The case is scheduled to go to trial in Waterbury Superior Court in May 2027.
Meghan Markle Unveils Second As Ever Holiday Drop on Instagram
Meghan Markle has taken her As Ever lifestyle brand into homeware, unveiling a new teapot and table mats as part of the label’s second Christmas collection after months of speculation.
The Duchess of Sussex, 45, launched As Ever’s $148 advent calendar earlier this month. It marks her first commercial venture since returning to the UK with Prince Harry and their children, Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five.
As Ever’s product range has grown quickly. Before introducing its latest home accessories, the brand launched three hampers—including the £180 ($242) Parlour Basket—as well as a collection of playing cards.
The former actress has now added more seasonal offerings, including a new tabletop range of crockery and napkins, a two-wick candle and a reed diffuser, all pitched as holiday gifts.
“Chapter Two” of Meghan’s festive collection features “sweet treats,” fragrances, the “Trellis tabletop collection” and what the brand describes as “thoughtful gifts for everyone on your list,” according to a post shared on As Ever’s official Instagram account.
The accompanying image showed woven copper coasters, a blue teacup and saucer, jam cookies and Meghan’s signature As Ever raspberry spread arranged on a wooden table.
The new products are currently available only in the US. However, speculation has mounted in recent weeks that Meghan could eventually bring As Ever’s £11 tea tins and £50 scented candles to the UK.
Meghan Markle has unveiled As Ever’s second Christmas collection, expanding the lifestyle brand into homeware
Announced on As Ever’s official Instagram account, “Chapter Two” includes “sweet treats,” fragrances, the “Trellis tabletop collection” and “thoughtful gifts for everyone on your list”
A promotional video shared by As Ever shows the former actress setting a festive table for the new collection
The 2026 “Holiday Advent Calendar” costs $148 and is described on As Ever’s website as a “magical celebration of the season”
Meghan offered an early glimpse of “Chapter Two” in a newsletter sent to subscribers on Wednesday evening. The message, titled “Hosting with Heart,” focused on her approach to entertaining.
She said her “secret to hosting with ease” is “preparation,” encouraging readers to “take care of the little details before the doorbell rings.”
Among the new arrivals is a $130 “heirloom handwoven rattan charger set,” alongside a blue-and-white porcelain teapot priced at $98, or approximately £73.
The collection also includes the $98 “Penny for Your Thoughts” leather notebook. As Ever markets the item as a “simple luxury for everyday use and enjoyment.”
A “Signature Two-Wick Holiday Candle,” priced at $98, is another standout launch from the seasonal range.
Described as a “limited-edition scent of the holiday,” the candle combines notes of pine, berry, cashmere and clove. As Ever recommends pairing it with Meghan’s $410 “Candle Lover’s” basket.
The website’s most expensive gift options include the $535 “Library Basket” hamper, which costs just under £400. It contains a signature leather-bound notebook, coasters, a card set, a candle and a matchbox.
For chocolate lovers, As Ever is offering a $75 “Trophy Chocolate Bar Gift Set” containing five of the brand’s “beloved” bars. The limited-edition chocolates were created with Los Angeles-based Compartés, the chocolatier behind Meghan’s costly advent calendar.
The latest As Ever range includes the $98 “Penny for Your Thoughts” leather notebook, described by the brand as a “simple luxury for everyday use and enjoyment”
As Ever’s ‘Signature Two-Wick Holiday Candle’ is priced at a whopping $98, or approximately £73
One of Meghan’s priciest gifts on is the $535 ‘Library Basket’ hamper, complete with her signature leatherbound notebook, coasters, card set, candle – and a matchbox
Also on offer is Meghan’s ‘curated’ popcorn medley, marketed at the high price of $65. The popcorns, listed as a ‘luxury taste of nostalgia’ on the As Ever page, come in milk chocolate, white chocolate and salted popcorn flavours – and are topped with Meghan’s signature ‘flower sprinkles.’
The Duchess’ Christmas range hasn’t been without its controversy, after a British priest faced backlash online from ‘Sussex Squad’ supporters when publicising a £6 charity advent calendar in contrast to the one promoted by Prince Harry’s wife.
Meghan unveiled the £112 ($148) gourmet chocolate calendar in an online advert earlier this month while wearing a reported £75,000 worth of clothing and jewellery.
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Anglican priest and London university chaplain the Reverend Daniel French suggested that people could instead buy the charity advent calendar that is almost 20 times cheaper and contains Fairtrade chocolate.
The alternative he recommended also raises money for a leprosy charity and comes with a ‘little booklet on the meaning of Christmas’, he told his followers.
Sharing an image of Meghan alongside her As Ever product, Rev French wrote: ‘For £5.99 you can pre-order a Christian Advent Calendar with Fairtrade chocolate from the Meaningful Chocolate Company. A donation is made to The Leprosy Mission.’
The calendar also comes with a 24-page Christmas story and activity booklet celebrating the birth of Christ.
But Rev French’s post sparked a backlash from members of the Sussex Squad, who branded him ‘satan spawn’ and ‘evil’, while claiming he had an ‘ugly heart for a so-called Christian’.
His Protestant colleague Father Chris Phillips – whose parish is in Benhilton, south-west London – backed the priest on X, prompting a fresh wave of angry responses, to which he replied that he had ‘encountered the Sussex Squad on here’, adding: ‘Wow.’
His defenders have said he has been ‘terrorised’ by ‘deranged trolls’ ever since, forcing him to lockdown his account. Trolls claimed he was a ‘coward’ for doing so.
Meghan’s chocolate advent calendar is her first major As Ever product since she moved back to the UK
It was this X post from Rev Daniel French about a Christian alternative to Meghan’s calendar that sparked a row
After 24 hours of online abuse, including threats and defamatory suggestions about his character, he was forced to lock his account and blocked a number of pro-Meghan supporters.
Both priests have been asked to comment.
Meghan unveiled As Ever’s first advent calendar in collaboration with LA-based gourmet chocolate company Compartes earlier this month.
The £112 box of chocolate treats is her first major product since she, Harry and their two children moved back to the UK.
The calendar – ‘inspired by her Montecito home and garden’ – features a festive illustration of the £11million mansion she and Prince Harry called home for six years.
A press release declared that ‘every detail was considered with care, including countdown numbers hand-painted in Meghan’s own penmanship using edible gold lustre’.
The ‘limited-edition’ product includes 24 handcrafted chocolates and flavours include strawberry, raspberry, blackberry and orange marmalade, plus what is described as a ‘special chocolate finished with Meghan’s own flower sprinkles’.
Compartés’ dark chocolate ganache truffle also features in the calendar, with Meghan’s writing said to turn ‘each day’s reveal into a small, personal moment’.
The product is available to order in the US on As Ever’s website, with delivery from early November.
Meghan’s business described this as the ‘latest chapter in an ongoing collaboration between the two brands’, after the $12 (£9) As Ever x Compartés chocolate bars.
As Ever explained that the box’s design was ‘inspired by Meghan’s Montecito home and garden’, and she worked on it with Compartés creative director Jonathan Grahm.
The product is ‘made to be enjoyed through December and treasured long after’ and ‘brings together the artistry of Compartés and the warmth that defines As Ever’.
Compartés said it was also selling three other cheaper but ‘ultra-giftable advent calendars’ at $120 (£91) each, including ‘Enchanted Castle’, ‘The Nutcracker’ and ‘Winter Forest’.
Meghan has also entered the Christmas hamper market for the first time, launching a new ‘hostess basket’ with her As Ever brand alongside her advent calendar.
The Duchess’ $211 ‘Holiday Collection’ basket has a leather As Ever tag with gold lettering and comes pre-filled with peppermint and lemon-and-ginger tea caddies, a trio of spreads, flower sprinkles and Meghan’s scented candles.
Other products in Meghan’s ‘Holiday Collection’ include ‘botanical confection’ chocolates developed by Los Angeles brand Compartes as part of an ‘ongoing collaboration’ and two decks of ‘parlour cards’.
Two Suspected Gunmen Killed After West Bank Shooting Injures 5 Israelis
Five people were wounded, two of them critically, and two suspected gunmen were killed in a shooting in the southern West Bank on Friday, officials said.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it responded to a shooting near Judea Junction on Friday and killed two individuals it described as “terrorists.”
The IDF established a blockade as security forces continued searching the area, the military said.
Israeli forces stand guard near the site of a shooting in Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (REUTERS/Ammar Awad)
The Times of Israel reported that all five people wounded in the shooting were Israelis.
First responders told the outlet that two victims were in critical condition, while three others sustained light-to-moderate injuries.
Israeli authorities responded to a shooting in the southern West Bank on Friday that wounded five people and left two suspected attackers dead. (REUTERS/Ammar Awad)
Magen David Adom, Israel’s emergency medical service, said its teams treated two critically injured people at the scene.
Authorities had not immediately identified the suspected gunmen.
Israeli security forces examine the scene of a shooting near Judea Junction in the West Bank that injured five Israelis. (REUTERS/Ammar Awad)
This is a developing story; check back for updates.
Gap Between Asking and Sold Property Prices Widens, Knight Frank Reports
Estate agents and property sellers are routinely setting asking prices well above the figures homes eventually achieve, with the average property selling for almost 10 per cent less than its original listing price.
Knight Frank says sellers are being forced to accept steep discounts as higher mortgage rates and an oversupply of homes create tougher conditions for the property market.
Homes where contracts were exchanged between July and September achieved an average of 90.6 per cent of their initial asking price, according to Knight Frank data.
In practical terms, a property first advertised at £300,000 would sell for about £271,800, while a home listed at £500,000 would typically change hands for £453,000.
Buying agents say they are negotiating discounts of up to 26 per cent, particularly on smaller flats, new-build properties and former buy-to-lets. These homes are proving especially attractive to bargain hunters as sellers cut prices heavily to bring buyers through the door.
Jo Eccles, founder and managing director of prime London buying agency Eccord, says some vendors are also putting their properties on the market with unrealistic price tags.
‘We achieved a discount of 26 per cent recently on a house in southwest London,’ says Eccles.
‘In overpricing to begin with and sitting on the market for some time, the seller was on the back foot and we were able to capitalise.’
The current climate is a marked departure from 2021 and 2022, when demand was boosted by the pandemic-era stamp duty holiday, the ‘race for space’ and lower mortgage costs.
During the same July-to-September period in 2022, sellers achieved 100 per cent of their initial asking prices on average, Knight Frank reported.
Expensive homes see biggest discounts
The premium end of the property market is facing particularly challenging conditions.
Homes priced at £2million or more are half as likely to sell as properties below that threshold, take twice as long to find a buyer and typically sell at a discount of nearly £250,000, according to TwentyCi data released this month.
Jonathan Hopper of buying agency Garrington Property Finders says the largest price reductions are generally being seen on prime properties, particularly in London.
Garrington’s analysis found that fewer than four in 10 London homes listed between July and September secured a buyer.
Across the capital’s £1million-plus postcodes, 3.6 properties were listed for sale for every one that sold. Only 28 per cent of homes found a buyer during the three-month period.
The analysis also showed that for every 100 sales agreed, 62 properties were withdrawn from the market. That is twice the national rate and suggests many sellers ultimately abandoned their attempts to move.
Hopper says: ‘These figures capture well just how hard things are for sellers at the premium end of the market.
‘Rather than seeing their home sit unsold, sellers often face an awkward choice between coming off the market or slashing the price.’
Hopper says buying agents are also seeing a ‘discount two-step’ emerge among sellers in southern England.
Under this approach, a seller makes an initial price cut to generate interest and increase viewings, then agrees to reduce the price again during negotiations with a prospective buyer.
Ripe for negotiation: Sellers are willing to slash asking prices in a tough market
Why do homes get over-valued?
Sellers want to get the best possible price for their property. This can result in some trying their luck by listing with an overly ambitious asking price.
In some cases estate agents feel they have little choice but to agree, or risk losing the instruction.
However, some agents have been known to over-value homes in order to win over sellers, often in the hope that they can persuade them to reduce it to a more realistic level later.
Buying agent Jo Eccles says: ‘This is a really tricky market to navigate, because a discount from the asking price set by the seller or their agent isn’t necessarily a discount from the true value.
‘In some cases, sellers are setting the asking price to try and recoup what they paid for the property, plus stamp duty and any works carried out during their ownership.
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‘In other cases, selling agents are overpricing properties to win instructions over their competitors. In both these scenarios, the asking price is not a true representation of market value today.’
Jo Eccles, founder and managing director of prime central London buying agency, Eccord
How to haggle off the asking price: Top tips
Buyers in locations where properties are struggling to sell can feel more confident in offering significantly under the asking price without offending the seller.
The seller and their estate agent are likely to be short of interest and this creates the perfect opportunity to buy at a discount.
It’s worth understanding what buyer demand and house prices are doing in a local area, rather than focusing on the county or country as a whole.
There may still be strong buyer demand or a lack of good quality homes for sale in a specific area, for example.
Buyers shouldn’t assume they can pluck a figure out of the air and expect the seller to knock it off the price, according to buying agent Jonathan Hopper.
‘Asking prices are a seller’s aspiration and a starting point for negotiations. Smart buyers will do their homework to get a handle on how realistic the asking price is, and to figure out the seller’s motivation,’ he says.
‘Understanding these two things will help you calibrate an offer the seller is likely to accept, even if it is below their asking price.’
Hopper suggests the two key tell-tales buyers should look out for are any signs of the seller being in a hurry or if they have been struggling to get serious offers.
‘If offers have been rejected, try to find out why,’ Hopper adds. ‘If no offers have been made, especially for a while, the seller may be getting anxious and this will give you the maximum chance of success if you’re serious and have all your financial ducks in a row’.
Jo Eccles suggests buyers make sure they’re in a position where they can actually proceed before they try to negotiate.
‘Present your offer with as much detail as possible in terms of who you are and why you’re buying the property, as well as practical information such as who your solicitor and mortgage lender is, your financial position and preferred timescales for exchange and completion,’ she advises.
Eccles thinks buyers should avoid debating with the estate agent about what they think the property is worth or bringing in examples of other sold homes to argue their point.
She adds: ‘My advice would be to present your offer with tact and not get drawn into a potentially insulting debate about what the property is worth.
‘It erodes goodwill from the transaction and reduces it simply to facts and figures, comparables and price statistics, rather than getting across the emotion behind your offer.
‘This reduces your likeability and the seller may also suspect you will behave badly through the purchase process or find ways to chip the price later on.
‘Sellers are very sensitive, as so many of them are selling for a loss, so coming across as an aggressive or know-it-all buyer won’t win you any favours.
‘A seller or agent is much more likely to trust you if you say, ‘This is as far as I can stretch and I appreciate it might not be what you’re looking for, but I will be an upstanding and committed buyer.’
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