A round-up of the latest property market news, collating survey data, statistics, trends and information about the property market. (All figures below are the most recently available data.)
UK House Price Index
Data source: Land Registry
UK average house price = £224,144, down -0.2% in the month, up 4.2% in the year. Monthly index (where January 2015 = 100) is 117.6
The average house price in England is now £240,949 (4% up annually), in London £471,944 (down -0.7%), and in Wales £152,999 (3.5% up annually).
Affordability and lack of new house sale instructions affecting the house buying market, particularly new buyers enquiries, which fell for the twelfth consecutive month.
The annual volume of sales fell by -12.9% in the UK in the year to January 2018 (based on around 90% of final registered transactions).
Halifax
UK average house price = £220,962, down -3.1% in the month, down -0.1% in the quarter, up 2.2% in the year.
The number of mortgage approvals fell in March for the second consecutive month by 1.4% to 62,914, although the number of approvals in the three months leading up to March were 1.7% higher than the three previous months.
The number of new sales instructions fell for the 25th successive month and new buyer enquiries fell for the 12th consecutive month.
Consumer confidence remains low, although there seemed little concern from mortgage holders over potential interest rate increases, with fewer than a third concerned that rising rates would affect their ability to pay.
Rightmove
England and Wales average house asking price = £308,075 up 0.8% in the month and up 1.1% in the year.
Prices continued to reach record levels in seven of eleven regions but the market has become increasingly price sensitive, with sellers needing to price sensibly to achieve a sale. ‘Right property – right price’ house sales are strong, and the Rightmove website has recorded a record number of visitors.
The London and South East market is still readjusting. The asking prices of new property coming onto the market are up 1.5% in the month. The South East commuter belt saw year on year price falles of 0.1% (the first negative figure annually since 2011).
Nationwide
UK average house price = £213,000 up 0.2% in the month, up 2.6% in the year.
Surveyors continue to report subdued levels of enquiries from buyers and fewer new instructions. The number of cash buyers had declined over 18 months, partly due to stamp duty on second homes, although around a third of transactions still come from cash buyers.
The number of people who now own their homes outright has increased, due to an aging population,moving home or downsizing. The number of home owners who own their home outright overtook those with mortgages in 2014. Homes that were owned outright were below the national average in London and the Outer Metropolitan regions.
LSL / Acadata
Average England and Wales house price = £302,252, -0.1% change in the month, up 1.0% in the year.
A new Land Transaction Tax due to be introduced in Wales has caused a price surge of 4.8%.
Other than London and the South East, prices are 3% higher than this time last year. London is currently undergoing a fall in annual prices which are an average £15,415 lower than a year ago.
The number of property transactions has fallen by 25% in April, blamed largely on poor weather earlier in the year.
HM Revenue & Customs
The provisional number of UK residential property transaction completions (>£40k) for April 2018 was 100,190, representing an increase of 3.5% between Mar-Apr 2018, and the seasonally adjusted figure is -2.7% lower than April 2018. The number of non-adjusted residential transactions was 12.5% higher than March 2018, and -2.0% lower than April 2017.
The number of non-residential property transactions increased by 7.6% between Mar-Apr 2018. This is 6.6% higher than April 2017.
Land Registry Price Paid Data
Of the 90,284 residential sales received for registration in March, the most expensive residential property sale was a detached property in Barnet, Greater London, which sold for £15,000,000. There were 463 residential property sales valued at £1m or more in England and Wales, 275 of which were in Greater London.
The cheapest residential sale was a terraced property in Bishops Auckland, County Durham which sold for £20,000.
REGIONAL HOUSE PRICES
| UK HPI Regional figures (all percentages are positive unless indicated otherwise) | |||
| March 2018 | Average price GBP | Monthly change | Annual change |
| England | Â 240,949 | -0.3% | 4.0% |
| Northern Ireland (Quarter 1 – 2018) | 130,026 | 0.3% | 4.2% |
| Scotland | 146,009 | 0.5% | 6.7% |
| Wales | 152,999 | -0.1% | 3.5% |
| East Midlands | 184,736 | -0.6% | 5.6% |
| East of England | 291,415 | 1.0% | 5.8% |
| London | 471,944 | -0.9% | -0.7% |
| North East | 124,381 | -1.5% | 2.1% |
| North West | 157,461 | -0.3% | 5.2% |
| South East | 320,682 | -0.2% | 3.3% |
| South West | 249,839 | -0.3% | 4.9% |
| West Midlands Region | 188,697 | -0.8% | 5.1% |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 155,251 | -0.3% | 3.7% |
UK HPI Average monthly price by property type
| Property type | March 2018 GBP | March 2017 GBP | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £342,722 | £325,539 | 5.3% |
| Semi-detached | £210,283 | £201,056 | 4.6% |
| Terraced | £180,941 | £172,990 | 4.6% |
| Flat or maisonette | £200,157 | £196,247 | 2.0% |
| All | £224,144 | £215,078 | 4.2% |
Rightmove regional figures
| May 2018 | Average price GBP | Monthly change % | Annual change % |
| Greater London | 437,746 | 1.5 | -0.2 |
| South East | 411,761 | 0.8 | -0.1 |
| South West | 308,750 | 1.6 | 2.9 |
| East of England | 357,680 | 1.2 | 1.7 |
| West Midlands | 225,469 | 2.6 | 4.3 |
| East Midlands | 223,266 | 0.9 | 4.8 |
| North West | 194,303 | 0.3 | 3.9 |
| Wales | 192,422 | 1.6 | 4.3 |
| Yorkshire & Humberside | 190,346 | 1.2 | 3.9 |
| North East | 149,810 | -0.3 | 0.4 |
Focus on London -Â Best and Worst (-) annual performers according to:
| Rightmove April 2018 | Average Price (£) GBP | Monthly change % | Annual change % |
| Redbridge | 473,991 | 1.6 | 4.1 |
| Barnet | 666,493 | 0.6 | 2.6 |
| Harrow | 563,011 | 0.1 | -3.5 |
| Ealing | 563,823 | 0.1 | -3.8 |
| LCL Acadata April 2018 | Average Price (£) GBP | Monthly change % | Annual change % |
| Kensington & Chelsea | 2,416,770 | -6.7 | 23.7 |
| Hackney | 617,761 | -1.4 | 7.4 |
| Wandsworth | 673,170 | -3.2 | -13.6 |
| Southwark | 579,361 | -6.1 | -17.5 |
RICS Survey Overview
The RICS Residential Market Survey for April reported that new buyer enquiries and and agreed sales had stablised. Sales of more expensive properties and properties in London and the South East remain weak.
59% of respondents reported that house prices listed at <£500k were achieving the asking price or slightly higher, but in many cases more expensive properties were not reaching the asking price.
Near term outlook for house price and sales expectations remains flat in most areas, although there is some optimism for a small upturn with the exception of London. There was a dearth of new landlord instructions on the rental market, and tenant demand had slipped from 6% to 1% in the previous quarter.
Source: Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
Rightmove.co.uk is the UK’s leading property website, displaying details of homes for sale or rent to the largest online audience. It is consistently ranked the number one property website in the UK (source: Experian Hitwise). It has around 90% of all properties for sale and at any time displays a stock of over one million properties to buy or rent, worth around £270 billion. The Rightmove.co.uk site attracts over 130 million visits from home movers each month with time on site averaging over one billion minutes per month (Rightmove data, 2017).
LSL Acad E&W HPI is derived from Land Registry (LR) house price data, seasonally and mix adjusted by property type. © Crown copyright material reproduced with the permission of Land Registry. The prices are smoothed to show underlying trends. LSL Acad E&W HPI includes cash purchase prices and is the only index based upon the complete, factual house price data for England & Wales, as opposed to a sample.
UK HPI: Monthly house price inflation, calculated using data from Land Registry, Registers of Scotland and Land and Property Services Northern Ireland. This replaces the previous House Price Indices separately published by Office of National Statistics and Land Registry.
All figures within this article are correct at the time of going to press, and are reproduced in good faith. No responsibility will be taken for any decisions taken based on the information contained herein. Always seek professional advice.
Next Monthly Market Fact File due in June 2018.
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