UK house prices climb more than expected in January - Halifax
UK house prices rose more sharply than expected in January, while annual growth picked up, numbers from Halifax showed on Friday.
House prices rose by 0.7% in January following a 0.5% fall in December, with the average price increasing to £300,077, above £300,000 for the first time. A rise of 0.1% was expected for January, according to market consensus cited by FXStreet.
Annual house price growth increased to 1.0% in January from 0.4% in December.
‘While that’s undoubtedly a milestone figure, and activity levels show a resilient market, affordability remains a challenge for many would-be buyers,’ said Halifax head of Mortgages Amanda Bryden.
‘Broader economic conditions continue to provide some support. Wage growth has been outpacing property price inflation since late 2022, steadily improving underlying affordability. That’s a positive trend for buyers, and the long-term health of the market.’
The analyst said Halifax thinks house prices are likely to edge up between 1% and 3% this year.
Halifax said regional differences in house price performance have become more pronounced. Northern Ireland continues to lead the UK, with annual prices up 5.9%, while Scotland is 5.4% higher.
In England, the strongest growth is in the North, where prices rose by 2.1% in the North West and 1.2% in the North East.
In contract, the South East, South West, London and Eastern England all saw annual declines of more than 1%.
‘As the four most expensive areas of the country, these markets tend to be more sensitive to higher borrowing costs and taxes, which can weigh on affordability and confidence,’ Halifax said.
On Monday, the Nationwide house price index showed UK house price growth rose to 1.0% year-on-year in January from 0.6% in December.
It was ahead of the FXStreet-cited consensus which forecast an increase of 0.7%.
The building society said house prices rose 0.3% in January on-month after taking account of seasonal effects, swung from a 0.4% fall in December, and in-line with the market consensus.
This left the average UK house price at £270,873 in January, down from £271,068 in December.
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