Posts with tag: house price growth

UK House Price Growth Remains Stagnant

Published On: May 15, 2017 at 2:57 pm

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New research has revealed that property prices in England and Wales rose by just 0.1% during April.

In addition, data from the report by YourMove shows that prices have increased by only 0.5% in the last three months. Annually however, price growth remained fairly steady- rising to 3.5%.

Transaction levels of 63,500, down 7% on March, remain constant with those levels reached in 2015.

Growth

The West Midlands underlined its position as the fastest growing region in the UK, with price rises of 0.5% month-on-month and 6.2% year-on-year.

In London, growth remains subdued, with a month-on-month decrease in prices of 0.1%. Annually, the capital was the slowest region for price growth outside the North East, with a rise of just 1.4%.

UK House Price Growth Remains Stagnant

UK House Price Growth Remains Stagnant

Oliver Blake, Managing Director of Your Move and Reeds Rains estate agents observed: ‘Real transformation is needed to address the housing supply shortage. Recent reports from House of Commons committees have made a strong case for the government to do more.’[1]

‘As manifestos are published ahead of the upcoming election, we hope there is commitment to bridging the gap between supply and demand which will stimulate more market activity, stability and enable more people to secure their dream home,’ he added.[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/property/house-prices-remain-muted-for-second-consecutive-month.html

 

Property price inflation at 12-year high in some cities

Published On: April 28, 2017 at 9:46 am

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Residential property price growth at city level gathered pace during the first quarter of the year, according to the latest Hometrack UK cities house price Index.

Property price growth in major cities increased by 3.5% during Q1 2017, driven by rises in Manchester, Birmingham and Newcastle.

Rises

Manchester is still the largest growing city in the UK, with annual property price rises of 8.8%. This was followed by Birmingham, which posted growth of 8% over the same period.

House price affordability, coupled with record low mortgage rates, is driving demand for property in Britain.

Birmingham, Manchester and Newcastle are posting property price increases not seen since the middle of 2005. In addition, these regions are offsetting weaker growth in southern cities, such as London and Oxford, where pressures on affordability are having a detrimental impact.

The Index reveals that the annual rate of growth for UK cities analyzed was running at an average of 6.4%.

Property price inflation at 12-month high in some cities

Property price inflation at 12-month high in some cities

 

Taking Advantage

Richard Donnell, insight director at Hometrack, said: ‘Buyers outside the south of England appear to be shrugging off concerns over Brexit and a squeeze on real incomes to take advantage of low mortgage rates.’[1]

‘This is shifting the dynamics of the housing market. Cities that have been driving house price growth over the last 2-3 years, such as London and Cambridge, are now seeing a significant slowdown while large regional cities continue to register robust and sustained levels of house price growth,’ he continued.[1]

In addition, Mr Donnell said the Prime Minister’s decision to call a snap general election for the 8th June could create some short-term uncertainty in the market.

However, he noted: ‘Compared to the level of uncertainty over Brexit, it is debateable whether the election will really make a material difference to buyers’ decision in the next two months. In our view the current market trends appear well set for the rest of 2017 where above average growth in regional cities offsets weak, single digit increases in southern cities.’[1]

[1] https://www.propertyinvestortoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/4/city-level-residential-property-price-growth-gained-momentum-in-the-first-quarter-of-the-year-rising-by-3-5-led-by-large-regional-cities-such-as-manchester-birmingham-and-newcastle-according-to-the-latest-hometrack-uk-cities-house-price-index-w

 

Asking Prices Hit Record High, Particularly for First Time Buyers

Published On: April 24, 2017 at 9:38 am

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Asking prices hit a record high in April, with homes targeted at first time buyers driving growth, according to the latest House Price Index from Rightmove.

Asking Prices Hit Record High, Particularly for First Time Buyers

Asking Prices Hit Record High, Particularly for First Time Buyers

Figures from the property portal show that the average new asking price reached a record high of £313,655 in April, up by 2.2% on an annual basis and exceeding the previous peak of £310,471 recorded in June 2016.

Typical first time buyer asking prices surged by 6.5% in the 12 months to April, reaching an average of £194,881.

Second stepper properties rose in value by an average of 3.1% over the year, to hit £265,940, while those at the top of the ladder increased by 1.8%, to an average of £555,963.

Rightmove also reports that sales agreed – based on properties listed as sold subject to completion – rose by 10% year-on-year, which is the highest level at this time of year since 2007.

This helped average time on the market drop from 71 days in February to 65 in March, while stock increased from 52 to 65 over the same period.

The Director of Rightmove, Miles Shipside, comments: “High buyer demand in most parts of the country has helped to propel the price of newly marketed property to record highs.

“There are signs of a strong spring market, with the number of sales agreed achieved at this time of year being the highest since 2007.”

He continues: “It remains to be seen what effect the run-up to the snap election will have, though any slowdown in activity will be counterbalanced by the market’s current fast pace. Indeed, in locations where choice of suitable property is limited, hesitation could mean losing out to others who still decide to act.”

Shipside predicts that stretched buyer affordability will continue to be a price moderator for vendors who are over-ambitious with their pricing, alleviating the pace of price growth.

He adds: “Strong buyer activity this month has led to 10% higher number of sales agreed than in the same period in 2016. This large year-on-year disparity should be viewed cautiously, as the comparable timespan in 2016 saw a drop in buy-to-let activity with the additional second home Stamp Duty.

“However, they are also up by 3.8% when compared to 2015. With the growth in household numbers and new build supply struggling to keep pace, demand is strong and has led to the highest sales agreed numbers at this time of year since the heady pre-credit crunch levels.”

House Prices are Still Growing, but at a Crawl

Published On: April 18, 2017 at 9:56 am

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House prices are still growing annually, but growth is now three times less than 12 months ago, thanks to last year’s rush to beat Stamp Duty changes.

House Prices are Still Growing, but at a Crawl

House Prices are Still Growing, but at a Crawl

The latest England & Wales House Price Index from Your Move and Reeds Rains estate agents shows that house prices returned to growth in March, rising by 3.3% annually to an average of £301,278. Monthly price growth stood at 0.5%.

In comparison, house price growth in March last year was 9.1%, although this was most likely skewed by the number of second homebuyers and buy-to-let landlords rushing to beat the 3% Stamp Duty surcharge.

The March 2017 index does, however, show that house prices have now returned to growth, after inflation slipped from 5.8% in November to 5.3% in December, before dropping to 4.7% in January and 3.1% in February.

Meanwhile, house prices in Birmingham recorded the greatest gains of all UK regions in March for the first time in 21 years.

Property prices in the West Midlands grew by 4.8% in March, to reach an average of £212,706, compared with growth of 1.3% in London and 3.5% in the South East.

The Managing Director of Your Move and Reeds Rains, Oliver Blake, comments: “There is little in the short to medium-term that will disrupt the market greatly, with interest rate increases seemingly on hold, mortgage supply and pricing remaining favourable, and consumer confidence strong. In addition, first time buyer numbers are up, not least as a consequence of Government schemes and the bank of mum and dad.

“However, with supply still tight, rising house prices remain a problem. We therefore cannot afford to overlook the ongoing housing shortage in the UK, which continues to dampen the hopes of many would-be homeowners.”

He continues: “The RICS [Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors] indicated in its February UK Residential Market Survey that ‘tight supply conditions’ across most regions, along with flat sales in that month, resulted in ‘a further erosion of available stock for sale, with the average stock per surveyor just shy of a record low’. Our data shows that March has seen a pick-up on this.”

Average House Price Growth of 5.8% Recorded in February, Reports Land Registry

Published On: April 11, 2017 at 10:00 am

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The latest Land Registry/Office for National Statistics (ONS) House Price Index shows that average house price growth stood at 5.8% in February, taking the average property value in the UK to £217,502.

Average House Price Growth of 5.8% Recorded in February, Reports Land Registry

Average House Price Growth of 5.8% Recorded in February, Reports Land Registry

On a monthly basis, UK house prices rose by an average of 0.6% when compared to January 2017.

In England, annual house price growth stood at 6.3% in February, taking the average value to £234,466. Month-on-month, house prices were up by an average of 0.8%.

Wales recorded an average annual price rise of 1.8%, which takes the average value to £145,293. Monthly data shows that prices have fallen by an average of 0.9% since January 2017.

Data for London shows that prices increased by an average of 3.7% on an annual basis, to reach £474,704. On a monthly basis, they dropped by 0.9%.

Regionally, the East of England experienced the greatest growth in property values over the past 12 months, with an increase of 10.3%.

Yorkshire and the Humber recorded the largest monthly rise, at 2.5%.

The North East experienced the lowest annual price growth, of just 2.2%, while the South East saw the most significant monthly price decrease, of 1.0%.

The latest UK property transaction statistics showed that, in February, the total number of seasonally adjusted property sales completed in the UK with a value of £40,000 or more dropped by 1.9% compared to February 2016.

The Founder and CEO of online estate agent eMoov.co.uk, Russell Quirk, comments on the figures: “Although many have been quick to attribute a slowdown in the market to fears of Article 50 and buyer uncertainty, the latest data from the Land Registry would suggest a more natural adjustment is currently happening to the market.

“Prices across the board have generally continued an upward trend, despite a slower start to the year than usual, but it is no coincidence that both London and the South East have seen some of the only falls in monthly property price growth. Both have considerably higher average house prices than the rest of the UK, and what we are currently seeing is the property market in these areas realigning itself with the rest of the country, having seen an abnormal level of inflation over the last year.”

He continues: “As these markets pause to catch their breath, it is inevitable that the result will be a downward movement in price growth. But as we approach the peak time of year for both homebuyers and sellers, it is likely that this brief respite will soon subside, and price growth across the whole of the UK will remain buoyant.”

Annual House Price Growth is Down to 3.8%, Reports Halifax

Published On: April 10, 2017 at 9:50 am

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The annual rate of house price growth has dropped to 3.8% from February’s 5.1%, according to the House Price Index for March from Halifax. This is the lowest annual rate since May 2013 (2.6%) and less than half the 10.0% peak reached in March 2016.

Annual House Price Growth is Down to 3.8%, Reports Halifax

Annual House Price Growth is Down to 3.8%, Reports Halifax

On a quarterly basis, house prices rose by just 0.1% between January and March when compared with the previous three months. This is the lowest quarter-on-quarter increase recorded since October 2016.

Between February and March, house prices were unchanged for the second consecutive month, leaving the average property value at £219,755.

Separate research by Halifax shows that average house prices have increased by more than total average employees’ net earnings in a third (31%) of local authority districts in the UK over the past two years.

The biggest gap between rising house prices and earnings was in Haringey, London. Property values in the borough rose by an average of £139,803 over the past two years, exceeding average take-home earnings in the area of £48,353 over the same period – a difference of £91,450, equivalent to £3,810 per month.

In February, for which the latest data is available, total UK home sales slipped by 1% on January’s figure, marking the first decrease for five months. At 103,910, sales were 2% lower than in February last year. Despite this slight monthly decline, sales in the three months to February were 6% higher than in the preceding three months.

The volume of mortgage approvals for house purchases – a leading indicator of completed sales – dropped by 1% between January and February, to 68,300. Approvals have been in a narrow range between 67,000 and 70,000 per month over the past five months, suggesting that home sales are unlikely to change significantly over the next few months.

Supply also remains very low, with the number of properties coming onto the market dropping again in February. This was the 12th successive monthly decrease, keeping average stock levels on estate agents’ books close to historic lows.

The Housing Economist at Halifax, Martin Ellis, comments on the report: “The annual rate of house price growth has more than halved over the past 12 months. A lengthy period of rapid house price growth has made it increasingly difficult for many to purchase a home as income growth has failed to keep up, which appears to have curbed housing demand.

“Nonetheless, the supply of both new homes and existing properties available for sale remains low. This, together with historically very low mortgage rates, is likely to support house price levels over the coming months.”

Russell Quirk, the Founder and CEO of online estate agent eMoov.co.uk, also responds: “The market had shown positive signs out of the blocks for 2017, but it would seem these green shoots of upward property price growth have stalled in the early springtime frost of Article 50. It is also important to note that some natural adjustment in price levels is no surprise given the rapid level of growth seen over the last year, driven for the large part by a lack of housing stock to meet buyer demand.

“The triggering of Article 50 may lead to some further uncertainty in the market as, once again, UK buyers let the dust settle before committing to a property sale. But this should soon subside and it is likely that the initial upward trend in property price growth seen at the start of the year will continue to blossom over the coming months.”