The UK property market is firmly on the road to recovery, displaying vital signs of strength, according to Home.co.uk’s Asking Price Index for April.
The combination of cautiously rising prices, dramatically lower marketing times, and a restrained supply of properties for sale indicates that the market has adapted to the rise in mortgage interest rates and a return of buyer confidence.
Contrary to recent pessimistic forecasts, nominal price falls seem highly unlikely in the near term, according to Home.co.uk
Several indicators demonstrate that activity has returned to levels comparable to the pre-Covid market.
The Typical Time on Market is now much lower than in 2019, and the current total stock of property for sale remains significantly lower than during that pre-Covid year, despite recent increases.
Prices have adjusted to the new lending conditions, paving the way for the recovery. London, the South East, and the East are currently the weakest performing regions, while the North of England, Scotland, and Wales are showing remarkable annualized growth.
This regional performance is also reflected in the median time on market for unsold property: the North of England, Wales, and Scotland have significantly improved on their 2018 marketing times, while the remaining regions remain comparatively sluggish.
Mortgage rates remain low compared to inflation, helping fuel buyer demand. Unprecedentedly, 10-year fixed-rate mortgages are available at just under 4% while inflation is north of 10%.
The annualised mix-adjusted average asking price growth across England and Wales is now -0.3%; in April 2022, the annualized rate of increase of home prices was 6.4%.
Asking prices across England and Wales rose for a second consecutive month during March, by 0.2%, although the year-on-year growth slipped into the negative (-0.3%) for the first time since December 2019.
The total sales stock count for England and Wales increased during March by 15,844 to reach 388,482, although the total remains well below the 10-year average of 420,297.
The supply rate of new instructions remains restrained, dipping 2% last month compared to March 2022.
The Scottish property market is the new leader in terms of annualised regional price growth (6.8%), having posted a huge monthly increase of 2.3%.
Rents across Greater London continue to rise, up 19.6% year-on-year, with the London boroughs of Ealing and Kensington and Chelsea emerging as the new growth leaders in asking rents (+33% and +31% annualised respectively).
