The decline in housing stock by 10% compared to the same period in 2014 has created an upwards price pressure in popular areas, Rightmove said.

At a time when prices usually fall, the report indicated that more people are looking for a property than last year with more sellers putting their property up for sale.

Rightmove director and housing market analyst Miles Shipside said: “The unseasonably high 1.4% jump in new sellers’ asking prices suggests that there are more rises in the pipeline for the next few months. Early-bird buyers, including trader-uppers, can potentially catch a good deal by getting off the mark quickly in 2015, and get a better pick of the housing crop.”

However, Rightmove warned that sellers would be forced to work harder in 2015 than in 2014 as election jitters could deter the number of property sales, while many buyers will be more selective over which properties they choose to purchase.

Shipside added: “While you cannot change the location of a property, sellers can improve the appeal of their home in other ways to persuade today’s choosier buyers that the positives outweigh the negatives. Getting advice from estate agents about how to prepare or adapt your property ready for sale, pricing correctly to attract value-conscious buyers, and then getting it in front of as many of them as possible will be very important in 2015.”

Jeremy Duncombe, director, Legal & General Mortgage Club, said the report showed the need for more housing to be built to enable the market to grow in a “sustainable way”.

“With increasing demand pushing up prices, the lack of housing supply is making it harder for first time buyers to enter the market. In the run up to the election, the need to build more homes should be at the top of the political agenda. More houses would keep supply more in line with demand and stop prices rising out of the reach of large swathes of the UK population,” he said.