England and Wales house prices have seen the lowest rate of annual increase since March 2012, according to new findings from e.surv’s latest House Price Index for July 2023.
According to the Index, on an annual basis, the average sale price of completed home transactions using cash or mortgages in England and Wales in July 2023 rose by just £1,300, or 0.3%, and now stands at £370,610.
On a monthly basis, the average price dropped in July 2023 by some £370, or just -0.1%: this was the seventh month in succession that the monthly growth rate has fallen, albeit at a slowing pace.
The North East remained one of top areas in terms of price growth, for the third month running.
Three of the constituent areas in the North East have annual price growth in excess of 5.0%, including Hartlepool (+16.4%), Redcar and Cleveland (+7.0%) and Stockton-on-Tees (+5.2%).
The North East also recorded the some of the lowest average house prices in England, at £198,101, making it £26,000 lower than Scotland and £42,000 lower than Wales.
Richard Sexton, director at e.surv, said: “Most regions in England continue to register positive price movement, though this has fallen below 1.0% nationally.
“There are some outliers with Hartlepool in North East registering double-digit price growth in the year.
“In addition, Greater London has moved from the bottom to higher ranks in the price growth league table. This disparity highlights the regional variations and complexities within the housing market.”
He added: “Transactions for the first half of 2023 are at their lowest level since the financial crisis of 2007-09, reflecting the market’s responsiveness to economic changes, particularly rising mortgage rates.
“In recent weeks, positive signs have emerged as inflation shows signs of easing along, and swap rates have stabilised following a wobble in early July, bringing some assurance to the mortgage market in the second half of the year.”
