Welcome to the July 2019 Property Surveying market fact file – 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 = £229,431, 0.1% change in the month, 1.2% up in the year. Monthly index (where January 2015 = 100) is 120.3
House prices in the UK grew by 1.2% in the year to May 2019, a drop from 1.5% in April.
The strongest house price growth was in the North West where prices rose by 3.4% in May and 3.3% in April. London saw house prices fall by -4.4% in May and -1.7% in April.
The number of housing transaction reported by HMRC showed a -11.3% fall in the number of transactions from a year ago and a fall of -6.4% between April and May 2019.
Halifax
UK average house price = £237,110, down -0.3% in the month, 2.4% in the quarter, 5.7% in the year.
A -0.3% dip in property prices means the average house is now £237,110, reflecting the current trend of slow growth in property prices.
While the number of properties sold has fallen some -11% than May 2018, the number of mortgage approvals has remained steady.
Rightmove
England and Wales average house asking price = £308,692, down -0.2% in the month and -0.2% in the year.
Property prices have fallen an average -£656, the first monthly fall of this year. Sales are taking longer, and are at the lowest level for six years, meaning that estate agent stock has increased.
The most likely home buyer to hesitate before buying in the current housing market are those without the need for a mortgage. Four bedroom homes are selling for -1.1% in the month, although cheaper properties are holding their prices better.
Nationwide
UK average house price = £216,515, 0.1% change in the month and up 0.5% in the year.
Subdued house market growth persisted for the seventh consecutive month and house prices remain negative in London and the South East.
LSL / Acadata
Average England and Wales house price = £300,039, up 0.1% in the month, up 0.1% in the year.
The London market has an impact on house price indices as well as the housing market and wider economy, and there is evidence of a ripple effect from London.
The number of housing transactions is low for June, based on seven of the last eight years (2016 being the exception).
There is still a north-south divide with regions to the north recording the majority of transactions and affordability largely responsible for the imbalance. London, the South East and the East of England are either flat or negative in terms of house sales.
HM Revenue & Customs
The provisional number of UK residential property transaction completions (over £40,000) for May 2019 was 89,810, representing a decrease of -6.4% between Apr-May 2019, and the seasonally adjusted figure is -11.3% lower than May 2018.
The number of non-residential property transactions decreased by -0.8% between April-May 2019. This is -3.7% lower than May 2018.
Land Registry Price Paid Data
Overall 85,667 residential sales were received for registration in May. The most expensive residential property sale was a flat in the Borough of Kensington & Chelsea, London, which sold for £12,115,625. There were 459 residential property sales valued at £1m or more in England and Wales, 266 of which were in Greater London.
The cheapest residential sales were terraced properties in Peterlee and Shildon, both in County Durham, which sold for £18,000.
The sale of 64,481 freehold properties represent an increase of 3.9% on May 2018. 12,423 newly built sales represented an increase of 10% on May 2018.
REGIONAL HOUSE PRICES
| UK HPI Regional figures (all percentages are positive unless indicated otherwise) | |||
| May 2019 | Average price GBP | Monthly change | Annual change |
| England | £245,817 | 0.1% | 1.0% |
| Northern Ireland (Quarter 1 – 2019) | £134,811 | -1.0% | 3.5% |
| Scotland | £152,801 | 1.2% | 2.8% |
| Wales | £159,428 | -1.4% | 3.0% |
| East Midlands | £189,622 | -1.2% | 0.4% |
| East of England | £291,239 | 0.7% | 1.0% |
| London | £457,471 | -2.5% | -4.4% |
| North East | £127,885 | -1.0% | -0.7% |
| North West | £164,261 | 0.8% | 3.4% |
| South East | £323,745 | 0.9% | 0.6% |
| South West | £257,563 | 1.2% | 2.6% |
| West Midlands Region | £196,489 | 0.2% | 2.7% |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | £162,520 | 0.4% | 1.9% |
UK HPI Average monthly price by property type
| Property type | May 2019 GBP | May 2018 GBP | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £347,706 | £342,543 | 1.5% |
| Semi-detached | £219,087 | £213,572 | 2.6% |
| Terraced | £186,418 | £183,811 | 1.4% |
| Flat or maisonette | £200,341 | £202,901 | -1.3% |
| All | £229,431 | £226,671 | 1.2% |
Rightmove regional figures
| July 2019 | Average price GBP | Monthly change % | Annual change % |
| Greater London | 617,941 | -0.2% | -1.7% |
| South East | 409,905 | 0.0% | -0.5% |
| South West | 312,176 | 0.3% | 0.7% |
| East of England | 354,104 | 0.0% | -0.6% |
| West Midlands | 230,435 | -0.3% | 1.2% |
| East Midlands | 227,551 | -1.3% | 0.5% |
| North West | 200,338 | -0.2% | 2.5% |
| Wales | 200,697 | -0.7% | 2.2% |
| Yorkshire & Humberside | 194,054 | -0.3% | 1.3% |
| North East | 153,176 | -0.4% | 1.4% |
Nationwide regional figures
| Q2: 3 months to June 2019 | Average Price (£) GBP | Annual % change (this quarter) | Annual % change (previous quarter) |
| N Ireland | £143,343 | 5.2% | 3.3% |
| North West | £162,410 | 1.2% | 2.9% |
| East Midlands | £185,123 | 2.0% | 2.6% |
| West Midlands | £193,454 | 2.6% | 2.5% |
| Scotland | £148,783 | 0.4% | 2.4% |
| Yorkshire & Humber | £159,780 | 3.0% | 2.1% |
| East Anglia | £229,022 | 1.4% | 1.7% |
| Wales | £160,407 | 4.2% | 0.9% |
| North | £129,557 | 1.8% | 0.8% |
| South West | £245,767 | 1.1% | 0.5% |
| Outer South East | £277,227 | -1.6% | -1.1% |
| Outer Met | £358,850 | -1.8% | -2.0% |
| London | £465,722 | -0.7% | -3.8% |
| UK | £215,910 | 0/6% | 0.4% |
Focus on London -Â Best and Worst (-) annual performers according to:
| Rightmove May 2019 | Average Price (£) GBP | Monthly change | Annual change |
| Kingston upon Thames | 632,790 | 2.8% | 3.7% |
| Bromley | 537,546 | 1.1% | 1.4% |
| Merton | 612,670 | -1.9% | -6.7% |
| Tower Hamlets | 559,327 | -1.2% | -7.4% |
| LCL Acadata May 2019 | Average Price (£) GBP | Monthly change | Annual change |
| Southwark | 678,050 | -8.9% | 7.2% |
| Waltham Forest | 471,854 | -0.2% | 3.7% |
| Lambeth | 551,234 | -2.7% | -17.2% |
| City of Westminster | 1,394,936 | -5.5% | -17.5% |
RICS Survey Overview
The RICS Residential Market Survey for June 2019 reported an increase in buyer enquiries in the month after significant declines so far this year.
Despite general downbeat reports from survey contributors, a stable trend is emerging with a modest rise in buyers and steady house sales instructions.
New buyer enquiries increased by 10% in June, and this month’s survey showed increased demand in seven out of the twelve regions. A quarter of surveyors anticipated a rise in house prices over the next year, the most positive response in the last eleven months.
Landlord instructions fell for the 20th consecutive month, largely due to tax changes. Tenant demand remains strong and an increase in rental prices is expected of an average 3.6% a year over the next five years.
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 August.
© www.PropertySurveying.co.uk
SH/LCB