MortgagesJan 29 2015

House prices stabilise in December: Land Registry

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House prices stabilise in December: Land Registry

House prices rose moderately at the end of 2014, increasing by only 0.6 per cent in December to £177,766, new data has revealed.

According to Land Registry’s monthly house price index, published today (29 January), the annual price change for properties in England and Wales is 7 per cent.

The trend broadly accords with statistics published earlier today by Nationwide, which showed UK house prices rose by 0.2 per cent in December and 7.2 per cent over 2014, with the average price sitting at £188,446.

The Land Registry data for London show a December increase of 1.8 per cent and at 16.3 per cent, the annual change in the capital is considerably higher than other regions. The average price of property in London is now £464,936.

The north-west saw the lowest annual price growth, with a movement of 1.5 per cent, as well as the largest monthly decrease with a fall of 1.6 per cent.

Land Registry data also show sales volumes increased over the July to October period last year, averaging 82,067 transactions per month compared to 75,201 per month in the same period in 2013.

Adrian Gill, director of Reeds Rains and Your Move estate agents, commented that house price growth has ploughed forward solidly to the very end of the year and the real variation is in how growth is spread so unevenly across the country.

He said: “Demand at the bottom of the market continues to thrive under the careful watch of Help to Buy and high LTV lending, and stricter mortgage criteria haven’t gnawed away at consumer confidence.

“In fact, record low interest rates are sowing the seeds for generous long-term mortgage fixes, and stamp duty has been broken down to more manageable levels. With these favourable conditions in place, the time is ripe to buy, and this should cultivate further healthy sales momentum in 2015.”

Graham Davidson, managing director of Sequre Property Investment, added that the figures came as a surprise especially compared the previous month, with the upward trend not expected to continue.

“This increase is possibly due to a hive of buyer activity during September/October and resulted in the purchase prices being pushed up.”

He also noted the geographic split, stating that London and the south east remain relatively unaffordable to all but the wealthiest buyers, causing more to look to areas such as the north of England.

“The North West has taken a dip of 1.6 per cent in December, which signifies the north’s affordability and higher yielding opportunities for investors.”

Repossessions also continued to fall, which Mr Davidson said demonstrated how improving employment rates and a slow in the rate of inflation is creating a more sustainable and stable environment for home owners.

peter.walker@ft.com