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According to the latest official data, slumbering house prices have risen for the third month in a row.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reports that average UK house prices were up 2.2 per cent in the year to the end of May 2024, up from a 1.3 per cent increase in April 2024.
The reawakening of the market follows eight months of price falls.
The ONS calculates the average value of a UK home is £285,000, which is £6,000 more than a year earlier.
House prices are rising the fastest in Yorkshire and the Humberside, where a 3.9 per cent increase was posted.
However, prices are stagnating in London, where they increased by 0.2 per cent in the year.
According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, estate agents also report a drop in inquiries, with the worst declines in the southeast and southwest despite an increasing number of listings.
Analysts, led by the Bank of England, disclosed that 91,000 homes worth £40,000 or more changed hands in May—a 17 per cent year-on-year increase—while mortgage approvals remained level at 60,000, compared to 60,800 in April.
Region | Average house price | Monthly change | Annual change |
Yorkshire and The Humber | £209,055 | 1.90% | 3.90% |
North East | £162,360 | 1.50% | 3.70% |
East Midlands | £245,574 | 1.00% | 3.20% |
West Midlands | £250,787 | 2.30% | 3.00% |
North West | £217,525 | 0.90% | 2.90% |
South West | £318,223 | 0.60% | 2.30% |
East of England | £337,757 | 0.60% | 1.90% |
South East | £375,693 | 0.30% | 0.70% |
London | £523,376 | 3.90% | 0.20% |
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England | £302,393 | 1.30% | 2.20% |
Scotland | £191,435 | 0.30% | 2.50% |
Wales | £216,002 | 2.50% | 2.40% |
Source: HM Land Registry
The data shows that house prices are surging by at least double the value of flats and maisonettes. While detached homes (+3.9 per cent), semi-detached homes (+3.9 per cent) and terraced homes (+2 per cent) all showed growth, the cost of flats dropped 0.9 per cent.
The price of new builds rose 13 per cent annually, while the cost of pre-lived homes was down 0.1 per cent.
Elsewhere, mortgage lenders Nationwide and Halifax published house price data for June.
The Halifax said house prices were up 1.6 per cent year-on-year, with the average home costing £288,455.
The Nationwide posted a 1.5 per cent annual house price increase but values the average home at £266,064.
Both lenders view the housebuying market as ‘broadly flat’ for the past year, mainly due to high interest rates impacting affordability.
Nationwide says a first-time buyer with a 20 per cent deposit has a mortgage payment equal to 37 per cent of take-home pay—above the long-term average of 30 per cent.