Nationwide: house price growth slows in August


Updated on 27 August 2015 | 0 Comments

Latest building society index shows weakest annual pace since June 2013.

The pace of UK house price growth has slowed in August, according to the latest Nationwide House Price Index.

The building society says prices increased by 0.3% this month, compared to a rise of 0.4% recorded in July.

The dip means annual house price growth has edged down from 3.5% to 3.2% - the weakest since June 2013.

The average price of a UK home is now £195,279, down from £195,621 in July according to Nationwide.

How house prices have changed

Here’s how house prices have changed over the last 12 months, according to Nationwide.

Month

Monthly change % (seasonally adjusted)

Annual % change

Average house price

August 2014

0.8%

11.0%

£189,306

September 2014

-0.1%

9.4%

£188,374

October 2014

0.6%

9.0%

£189,333

November 2014

0.3%

8.5%

£189,388

December 2014

0.2%

7.2%

£188,559

January 2015

0.4%

6.8%

£188,446

February 2015

-0.1%

5.7%

£187,964

March 2015

0.1%

5.1%

£189,454

April 2015

1.0%

5.2%

£193,048

May 2015

0.2%

4.6%

£195,166

June 2015

-0.2%

3.3%

£195,055

July 2015

0.4%

3.5%

£195,621

August 2015

0.3%

3.2%

£195,279

Source: Nationwide

What’s going on with house prices?

[SPOTLIGHT]Nationwide says the latest figures show that annual house price growth may be stabilising close to the pace of earnings, which has historically been around 4%.

But the building society warns the balance won’t be maintained unless construction on new homes accelerates.

In July, surveyors reported the lowest number of properties on their books since their records began in 1970, whilst new buyer enquiries picked up.

Read RICS: Government failing to tackle property drought for more.

But Nationwide says UK house prices have been remarkably resilient in recent years, compared to other countries impacted by the financial crisis.

UK house prices are currently around 5% above their pre-crisis levels, compared to Ireland (-38%), Spain (-36%) and the Netherlands (-18%).

Nationwide points out that though house price trends are influenced by a wide range of factors, labour market movements are among the most important. The strength of the UK labour market in recent years is a key reason why house prices have recovered more quickly.

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