Capital Appreciation up but values still below 2022 peak

UK house prices edged up by 0.2% in June, according to the Nationwide.

This resulted in the annual rate of growth rising from 1.3% in May to 1.5% in June, leaving prices around 3% below the all-time high recorded in the summer of 2022.

Nationwide chief economist Robert Gardner says: “Housing market activity has been broadly flat over the last year, with the total number of transactions down by around 15% compared with 2019 levels. 

“Transactions involving a mortgage are down even more (nearly 25%), reflecting the impact of higher borrowing costs. By contrast, the volume of cash transactions is actually around 5% above pre-pandemic levels.

“While earnings growth has been much stronger than house price growth in recent years, this hasn’t been enough to offset the impact of higher mortgage rates, which are still well above the record lows prevailing in 2021 in the wake of the pandemic. 

“For example, the interest rate on a five-year fixed rate mortgage for a borrower with a 25% deposit was 1.3% in late 2021, but in recent months this has been nearer to 4.7%.

“As a result, housing affordability is still stretched. Today, a borrower earning the average UK income buying a typical first-time buyer property with a 20% deposit would have a monthly mortgage payment equivalent to 37% of take-home pay - well above the long run average of 30%.”

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