House prices continue to rise

The UK House Price Index (UK HPI) for September has been released, showing house price changes for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The September data shows house prices have continued to rise, with the annual price showing an increase of 5.4%, seeing a 0.4% rise since August.

The average UK property now costs £226,367.

Broken down into regions, the data shows that English house prices are leading the way at an annual price increase of 5.7%, which takes the average property value to £243,945. Wales is hot on its heels at 5.3%, leaving Scottish house prices lagging to 3.1%.

Regionally, the North West has experienced the greatest increase in prices both within the month and over the year, with an increase of 2.1% and 7.3% respectively.

In London, the monthly house price figures fell by 0.2%, which continues the trend over the year, with London’s house prices the lowest regionally, with an increase of just 2.5%. This is the tenth consecutive month where London house prices have remained below the UK average.

In its latest survey, The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ (RICS) reported a fall in new buyer enquiries within September, with a net balance of -20% more respondents noted a fall in demand. Again, this continues the trend throughout the year, and shows the weakest figure since July 2016.

While the Bank of England Agents’ summary of business conditions reported that supply and demand appeared to be broadly in balance across the overall market. The new-build sector remains resilient, with the Help to Buy Scheme cited as a crucial factor in sustaining first-time buyers’ demand for properties.

 

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