UK housing market records strongest January since 2005

UK Housing Market

Britain’s housing market has made its strongest start to a year since 2005, with annual house price growth rising to 11.2%, according to the UK’s biggest building society.

Nationwide said the average price of a home hit £255,556 in January, the sixth consecutive monthly increase. The annual growth rate accelerated 0.8 percentage points from 10.4% the previous month, reaching its highest level since June.

Mortgage Approvals

Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said: “Housing demand has remained robust. Mortgage approvals for house purchase have continued to run slightly above pre-pandemic levels despite the surge in activity in 2021 as a result of the stamp duty holiday, which encouraged buyers to bring forward their transactions to avoid additional tax.

“Indeed, the total number of property transactions in 2021 was the highest since 2007 and around 25% higher than in 2019, before the pandemic struck. At the same time, the stock of homes on estate agents’ books has remained extremely low, which is contributing to the continued robust pace of house price growth.”

Source: The Guardian