Land Registry: annual house price growth at 5.6%

The November house price index from the Land Registry shows a monthly price increase of 0.4%.

Related topics:  Finance News
Rozi Jones
30th December 2015
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The annual price change now stands at 5.6%, bringing the average house price in England and Wales to £186,325.

The number of property transactions has decreased over the last year. From June 2014 to September 2014 there was an average of 83,095 sales per month compared to 79,315 in the same months a year later.

The November data for London shows a monthly increase of 1.6%. At 11.2%, the annual change for London is considerably higher than most other regions.

The average price of property in the capital is £506,724 in comparison with the average for England and Wales of £186,325.

The region with the most significant annual price increase is London with a movement of 11.2%. Yorkshire & The Humber and the North East saw the smallest annual price increases of 1.3%.

London also experienced the greatest monthly price rise with a movement of 1.6%, while Yorkshire & The Humber also saw the most significant monthly price decrease with a fall of 0.9%.

Jonathan Hopper, managing director of the buying agents Garrington Property Finders, commented:

"The property market is ending 2015 by returning firmly to type - double-digit price inflation in London, strong growth in South East and Eastern England, and a more mixed picture elsewhere.

"London property is once again making money faster than most of its inhabitants can earn it. With the average home in the capital now worth more than half a million - and rising in value by £3,300 in a month - it's no wonder salaries can't keep up.

"Transactions in London are down by 13% in a year, and squeezed supply has sent annual price growth in the capital rocketing up by 11.2%.

"However there are some encouraging signs though that the £1million and over market is emerging from the slumber triggered by last year's hike in Stamp Duty.

"Supply of these more expensive homes slowed to a trickle at the start of 2015, but more sellers are finally starting to come off the fence - and recognising they need to lower their price expectations. Across England and Wales, transaction volumes in this bracket finally stopped falling in September - which hints that the top end of the market is returning to health.

"Meanwhile East Anglia has consolidated its position as London's understudy - with annual price rises now a whisker away from double figures. Across England and Wales the North-South divide remains largely intact, with a notable exception in the North East. Average prices there rose by 1.3% in November alone, and even outpaced London's month-on-month rise in October.

"With consumer price inflation essentially flat and the Bank of England not expected to raise interest rates until late in 2016, the cost of borrowing will stay low and buyer confidence high as the new year begins.

"Britain's economic fundamentals remain strong, and together these factors will continue to stoke demand well beyond what current supply can meet. The inevitable result is continued house price inflation."

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