Our monthly Property Surveying summary of property market news, survey data, statistics, trends and information. (All figures below are the most recently available data.)
Data source: Land Registry
UK average house price = £245,443, 0.7% change in the month, 5.4% up in the year. Monthly index figures (where January 2015 = 100) 128.7
In England, the North West, East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber saw the highest house price growth annually while the lowest was seen in the East of England.
On average, house prices rose by 5.8% in Wales in the year, and 5.4% in England.
The number of mortgage approvals and property transactions were higher than last year. Pent up demand following the early lockdown as well as the temporary holiday in stamp duty have continued to maintain a buoyant market.
UK average house price = £253,243, up 1.2% in the month, 3.8% up in the quarter, up 7.6% in the year.
Monthly house price in November gave the strongest gains over five months since 2004. The price of the average property has risen some £15,000 in six months.
Larger homes and rural properties are more in demand than other properties, and mortgage approvals are at their highest level since 2007.
A slow down in the property market is anticipated over the next twelve months, following the end of the government’s support measures.
England and Wales average house asking price = £319,945, down -0.6% in the month and up 6.6% in the year.
Rightmove predicts a national average property price growth in 2021 of 4%, with a busy first quarter as the stamp duty changes approach. 650,000 properties are currently in the process of being bought and sold.
A “fresh start mentality” is expected to continue, following a 53% rise in prospective buyers over the same time last year.
UK average house price = £229,721, 0.9% change in the month and 6.5% increase in the year.
House prices rose annually in November at the highest rate since January 2015. Market momentum is slowing down, mainly due to economic issues associated with the pandemic. An uncertain outlook will reflect how policy measures can limit damage to the economy.
Average England and Wales house price = £319,816, 1.0% change in the month, 5.8% in the year.
HM Land Registry has issued partial releases of market data since April 2020, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its operations. Datasets are available.
REGIONAL HOUSE PRICES
UK HPI Regional figures
(all percentages are positive unless indicated otherwise)
| October 2020 | Average price GBP | % monthly change | % annual change |
| England | £262,175 | 0.6% | 5.4% |
| Northern Ireland (Quarter 3 – 2020) | £143,205 | 1.5% | 2.4% |
| Scotland | £163,248 | 1.4% | 6.0% |
| Wales | £175,998 | 2.5% | 5.8% |
| East Midlands | £207,605 | 1.9% | 6.6% |
| East of England | £300,744 | -0.9% | 3.4% |
| London | £490,936 | -1.2% | 3.9% |
| North East | £136,281 | -0.3% | 5.4% |
| North West | £177,796 | 1.2% | 6.6% |
| South East | £337,412 | 0.4% | 4.7% |
| South West | £274,319 | 0.4% | 6.1% |
| West Midlands Region | £210,637 | 0.9% | 5.3% |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | £177,115 | 2.4% | 6.6% |
UK HPI Average monthly price by property type
| Property type | October 2020 | October 2019 | Difference |
| Detached | £377,198 | £353,066 | 6.8% |
| Semi-detached | £234,535 | £222,433 | 5.4% |
| Terraced | £200,037 | £188,566 | 6.1% |
| Flat or maisonette | £209,330 | £204,632 | 2.3% |
| All | £245,443 | £232,923 | 5.4% |
Rightmove regional figures
| December 2020 | Average price GBP | Monthly change | Annual change |
| London | £620,986 | -1.5% | 3.5% |
| South East | £414,985 | -0.6% | 5.5% |
| South West | £320,017 | -0.5% | 7.2% |
| East of England | £365,938 | -0.1% | 7.2% |
| West Midlands | £242,656 | -0.3% | 8.1% |
| East Midlands | £242,803 | -1.0% | 7.1% |
| North West | £214,840 | -0.4% | 10.6% |
| Wales | £210,943 | -1.9 | 8.2% |
| Yorkshire & Humberside | £207,156 | -1.1% | 8.8% |
| North East | £159,381 | -1.3% | 9.1% |
Nationwide regional figures
| Q3: 3 months to September 2020 | Average House Price (£) GBP | Annual % change (this quarter) | Annual % change (previous quarter) |
| N Ireland | £146,152 | 1.5% | 0.1% |
| North West | £171,675 | 3.0% | 4.8% |
| East Midlands | £194,749 | 4.0% | 1.5% |
| West Midlands | £194,577 | 3.1% | 0.6% |
| Scotland | £153,347 | 2.0% | 4.0% |
| Yorkshire & Humber | £167,816 | 4.6% | 1.9% |
| East Anglia | £238,896 | 2.7% | 0.7% |
| Wales | £165,423 | 3.8% | 1.0% |
| North | £132,898 | 4.2% | -0.3% |
| South West | £260,316 | 5.5% | 1.5% |
| Outer South East | £291,404 | 4.8% | 1.7% |
| Outer Met | £376,682 | 5.0% | 0.8% |
| London | £480,857 | 4.4% | 1.0% |
| UK | £224,337 | 3.5% | 2.5% |
LSL Acadata Regional Data
| October 2020 | Average House Price £ GBP | Monthly % change | Annual % Change Greater |
| Greater London | £640,297 | 1.9% | 4.8% |
| South East | £400,284 | 0.8% | 5.9% |
| South West | £311,221 | 1.5% | 6.4% |
| East of England | £348,367 | 1.9% | 4.8% |
| West Midlands | £240,470 | 1.1% | 3.3% |
| East Midlands | £234,801 | 1.8% | 4.6% |
| North West | £207,462 | 1.4% | 5.8% |
| Wales | £199,957 | 0.7% | 4.3% |
| Yorkshire & Humber | £207,108 | 1.1% | 3.8% |
| North East | £172,706 | 1.1% | 3.1% |
Focus on London
Best and Worst (-) annual performers according to:
| Rightmove December 2020 |
Average Price (£) GBP | Monthly change | Annual change |
| Haringey | £649,760 | -1.6% | 10.6% |
| Kingston upon Thames | £631,234 | -1.0% | 7.9% |
| Southwark | £622,837 | -2.9% | -3.9% |
| Tower Hamlets | £564,292 | 0.8% | -4.6% |
| LCL Acadata October 2020 |
Average Price (£) GBP | Monthly change | Annual change |
| Brent | £683,701 | 2.2% | 21.9% |
| Hounslow | £572,861 | 2.1% | 15.1% |
| Greenwich | £456,999 | 1.5% | -8.5% |
| City of Westminster | £1,339,501 | -2.1% | -19.5% |
RICS Survey Overview
The RICS Residential Market Survey for November 2020 reported continued positive activity although house price and transaction expectations for the near term are more moderate. Expectations for the next twelve months are slightly negative, reflecting a more gloomy outlook in employment and the withdrawal of the Stamp Duty holiday that ends in March.
Tenant demand remains constant but landlord instructions have fallen in some areas. Rental growth is likely to be positive with the exception of London where it expected to fall over the next three months.
Rightmove.co.uk is the UKs 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.
The Monthly Market Fact File will be updated next month.
SH/LCB