Feeling a bit lost with so many house price indices out there?
The HomeOwners Alliance House Price Watch looks at all the information from the many indices out there to give you one easy-to-digest round-up of everything you need to know.
So, let's look at how prices have changed over the past month and year.
What’s going on with house prices?
When you average out the latest figures reported by all the major indices, monthly house prices posted a sharp 0.5% rise in February (see chart below).
The strong start to the new year has helped boost the 12-month average price by 0.8%, with the average UK home now valued at around £282,000.
Remarkably, Halifax data puts UK house prices just £1,800 below their all-time highs seen in the Summer of 2022 (when sub-1% mortgages were available).
That shows values have proved incredibly resilient given all the challenges homeowners have faced in the last two years.
As Zoopla notes: “The housing market has proved very resilient to higher mortgage rates and cost of living pressures.
"More sales and more sellers shows growing confidence amongst households and evidence that 4-5% mortgage rates are not a barrier to improving market conditions.”
What will happen to prices over the next year?
Despite the strong 0.5% house price growth seen in the last month – which was preceded by a 0.8% boost in January – analysts remain cautious about the housing market's prospects.
As Homeowners Alliance notes: "The decline in mortgage rates at the start of the year has prompted an uptick in the housing market.
"Nevertheless, the near-term outlook remains cautious and activity could cool again as the recent easing in mortgage rates is likely to stall on the back of uncertainty around the timing of Bank of England interest rate reductions.”
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What's happening to house prices near me?
Land Registry has the most comprehensive data regarding housing stock, and it provides a handy regional breakdown of house prices across the UK.
However, its data takes slightly longer to compile so isn't quite as up-to-date as that of the other property indices and certainly doesn't reflect the recent uptick in prices seen on the other property indices.
Nonetheless, it provides an interesting insight into how areas are faring relative to each other.
Looking at the last 12 months, its figures showed that prices fell in all but four regions.
The Scottish housing market proved the most buoyant by some distance, with prices rising a remarkable 4.8% despite all the market turbulence seen throughout 2023.
At the other end of the scale, London was the worst-performing market with prices falling 3.9%, more than six times the UK average drop of 0.6%.
See the table below for a full breakdown of prices by region.
What the indices say
Homeowners Alliance
“The rise in house prices and pick-up in market activity continued into February with buyer demand up again this month.
"The decline in mortgage rates at the start of the year has prompted an uptick in the housing market.
"Nevertheless, the near-term outlook remains cautious and activity could cool again as the recent easing in mortgage rates is likely to stall on the back of uncertainty around the timing of Bank of England interest rate reductions.”
Rightmove
“Mortgage rates have fallen considerably from their peak and are now remaining broadly stable after the uncertainty of late 2022 and 2023.
"Momentum to move in 2024 is continuing to build, but prospective sellers mustn’t get carried away. Buyers now have more choice of property for sale and many are still very price-sensitive, with mortgage rates remaining elevated.
"Sellers who are serious about moving this year would be well-advised to ride this wave of increased buyer confidence with an attractive asking price before any pre-election jitters or unexpected events dampen the momentum.”
Nationwide
“House prices are now around 3% below the all-time highs recorded in the summer of 2022, after taking account of seasonal effects. The decline in borrowing costs around the turn of the year appears to have prompted an uptick in the housing market.
"Nevertheless, near-term prospects remain highly uncertain, in part due to ongoing uncertainty about the future path of interest rates. After falling sharply in late December, swap rates, which underpin fixed-rate mortgage pricing, have drifted back up.
"Borrowing costs remain well below the highs recorded last summer but, if the recent upward trend is sustained, it threatens to restrain the pace of any housing market recovery.”
Halifax
“The figures continue to suggest a relatively stable start to 2024 and align with other promising signs of increased housing activity, such as mortgage approvals. In fact, the average price tag of a home is now only around £1,800 off the peak seen in June 2022.
While it is encouraging that we’ve seen growth in recent months, what happens next remains uncertain.
"Although lower mortgage rates, alongside expectations of Bank of England interest rate cuts this year, should help buyer confidence in the short term, the downward trend on rates is showing signs of fading.”
Zoopla
“The housing market has proved very resilient to higher mortgage rates and cost of living pressures.
More sales and more sellers shows growing confidence amongst households and evidence that 4-5% mortgage rates are not a barrier to improving market conditions.”
RICS
“The February 2024 RICS UK Residential Survey results are consistent with a slightly more upbeat picture for sales market activity than was the case throughout much of last year.
Nevertheless, the near-term outlook is still somewhat cautious, reflecting in part, the suspicion that the recent easing in mortgage rates is likely to stall on the back of ongoing uncertainty about the timing and speed of interest rate reductions.”